The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1890-07-04
Why Flax should be stacked.

Mr.. s. H. Stevens, formerly of
Humboldt, now flax seed inspector
for the Chicago Board of Trade, sends
US the following letter which although
long, we publish in full in the hope
that its suggestions may help Allen
county farmers to get the very best
returns possible from their enormous
fax crop:
To protect matured field of fax by
placing in stack at the proper time Is
q test of the acumen and thrift of the
owner 1t is the alert farmer who
rises to full comprehension of what
the critical period of fax farming de-
mands; his activity is stimulated by
the knowledge that neglect or a slight
delay in housing involves deprecia-
ton i'm value, and that it might be the
cause of the loss of his crop.
The solubility of flax seed i'm water
is such that its exposure to rain, how
ever slight, causes decreased weight
and lessened value, while heavy and
continuOued rains have frequently de-
strOyed all that was left unprotected.
Flax seed that has been exposed i'm
the field to the suns rays until it is
dry to brittleness, still holds latent
moisture, which will develop when
the seed is confined in mass and result
i'm heat and decomposition.
The above will explain to the coun-
try shipper why so much of his new
seed grades 'rejected"and "no grade"
A wagon-load of uncured seed-al-
though dry to the touch-will, when
placed i'm a car or warehouse bin, in
warm weather, become damp and
warm. Flax seed threshed when in
this dry condition described above, is
liable to be much broken and pulver-
lzed; the stalk will also break and be
intermixed with the seed, thereby in
creasing the impurity.
In the inspection analysis of such
broken and pulverized seed much must
be classed as impurity, to the detri-
ment of the shipper. The above be-
ing true, the waste at the threshing
floor must be very large.
Look on the reverse side. Should
rain fall on the fax exposed on the
field while waiting for the machine or
for other reasons, the straw becomes
rotten and great difficulty is encoun-
tered i'm threshing, and the seed is I'M
fit for storage and will not grade num-
Der one.
The reason why the Western Guilt
vatOr of flax annually breaks down
the flax seed market by throwing
thereon in sixty days One-half of the
crop, and that largely unfit for storage,
has been an unsolved problem, but the
reason is found in that general but
ruinous habit of threshing from the
field-for to thresh is to sell.
Having described now some of the
attendant dangers of the matured flax
crop, I will suggest how these dangers
may be easily avoided.
Well dried flax when stacked is rea-
sonably secure, and it Is in position TO
yield a good return for labor. The
sweatincidental to stacking passes the
seed to that indispensable condition
necessary to storage. 1t also imparts
toughness to the seed covering, and
straw, which protects the former from
breakage by the machine and gives
the latter a desirable plant tenacity.
With the million acres of fax grown
i'm the West held well i'm hand, by rea-
son of being gathered in barns and
stacks, the owners, in place of break
ing down the market, might control it,
or, at least they would be i'm position
to take advantage of any advance.
The fax having been properly stack
ed it becomes by easy transition, when
threshing day comes, fiaX-straw stacks,
retaining at least one-half the value it
had before being deprived of the seed.
The coarse, uninviting fiax-straw is
a true forage, as it is eaten with avidi-
ty and relish by all kinds of stock,
giving a vigorous growth to the young;
a healthy, thriving condition to the
full-grown, and a shining coat to all,
which is admirable proof that its con-
sthuents are i'm harmony with their
organism.
But the above il the least of its
value. 1t has impoverished the farm
ers' acres, but is prepared to repay
with interest. 1t Is estimated that
each acre of fax grown takes from the
soil fifty pounds of alkalies and twen-
ty pounds of PhOsphoric acid, which
shows thst it is most exhaustive
plant. The seed, which is the only
part removed from the farm, contains
but small portion of the mineral
manures taken from the soil, therefore
the fiax-straw retains nearly all the
ingredients withdrawn. 1t is a
natural sequence that when il is fed
to stock and returned to the land in
equilibrium of its fertility is maintain
ed. Respectfully,
s. H. STEVENS.