| Show GROWING GOOD CROP OF FLAX Bet Soil U I Sandy Loam Sufficiently Damp That Irrigation la Unnecessary The best soil for flux Is n sandy loam which Is sufficiently damp that It does not need to be Irrigated How ever It must not be too wet Hax can be grown on ground that Is drier IC it is of such texture that U will not bake when Irrigated If the ground bakes It is almost impossible to gather the flax without breaking the fiber Hemp will do well on most any kind of soil where wheat will thrive writes William Wadley In Field and Farm The ground should be well 1 fertilized and then plowed deep This hould be done In the fall The next spring the ground should be well har rowed and worked down very One The object of having the ground rich and in good condition Is to make the plants grow taller and hence produce more lint If only the seed Is desired poorer ground can be used The seed should bo planted after all danger of frost Is past It can either be drilled In or sown broadcast broad-cast The seed should bo well covered with soil If merely raising the plants for the seed a bushel to the acre will bo sufficient When tho fiber Is wanted more seed should bo sown the thicker the crop tho finer the fiber will be If the ground I Is damp enough so that Irrigation Is not required no further euro IB necessary until the crop is ripe It must however how-ever bo surrounded by a good fence to keep all animals out as the plants are practically spoiled if broken or tangled up When the crop Is ripe It should bo pulled very carefully and tied In small bundlesabout a good double handful In each bundle These should be thoroughly dried and then placed In a large shock Oil a canvas A band should be tied around this large shock to hold It upright Then the heads should bo carefully pounded to loosen tho seed Now I Lake each small bundle and beat the seed out of It The seed can be cleaned by a sieve or fanning mill Great care must be taken not to break the stalks The plants should then be I placed In some clean water and left I for about ten days or until they are sufficiently rotted that tho lint will readily leave tho stalk Great care should be taken to keep the plants clean during all this process as the whiteness of the fiber depends on cleanliness When the stalks are rotted they should be taken out and thoroughly dried after which they should be placed In a dry room so that they will not get wet again before be-fore they are used Of course in these times the lint would bo taken and worked up Into linen rope etc by machinery hence the old hand process which we used in early days would perhaps not be of Interest now I am not acquainted with the machine process |
