Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1902-08-14
ARoUr FLAx.
Prof. Ro1ley OF the Agricultural Coi-
1ege Explains the Premature
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wv az q 6OOu LldHy lSILGT0
at the college nowadays asking for ex-
plantations concerning what appears to
be a premature ripening OF the fax
crop of the state Is the most beautiful
n that n man ever looked upon.
The state possesses thousands of acres
Of fax growing upon their new break
ing or on land which has only been
cropped a few years, and perhaps lit
tie, If any Of 1t, yer previously had fax
crops upon It. This accounts for the
fact that the crop is fine. IT is not
fine because Of any special care taken
by the persons who have sowed the
crop. / am writing this article now
to call attention 20 all such persons
that fax always has been a new land
crop. We have found out at the college
that the reason for this lies in the fact
that 1T has always been attacked by
a number OF parasitic fungi which live
in the soil n attack the roots OF the
plants. These fungi get into the soil
by being seeded there with the seed.
When once they are there they stay
there permanently.
The cases of premature ripening re-
ferred to are, however, this year quite
numerous. 1 have seen 100 acres in one
field upon new breaking, at which the
plants are, at date of this writing, in
full boil, but to all appearances the field
Is dead ripe. In his case there was so
much of the fungus sowed with the
poor, scaly type or seed that practically
every plant was attacked by the wilt
disease the first year, the fungus being
able to spread through the soil rapidly
because of the abundant rainfall and
moisture. AS it was introduced by the
seed OF comparatively a few plants
evenly distributed in the drill rows,
the rest Of the plants have been at
tackled in the root so late they were
not killed until the plants there reached
maturity. In such plants there will be
no seed, or IL there is a little. ii will be
~shriveled, scaly seed. Such scaly seed
will produce the disease another year
II sowed upon good land. The fields in
which such plants are growing are now
ruined for the growth OF fax, at least
until a large numner Of years have in
tervened. When the disease is once so
thoroughly introduced, all lax plants
will die before they reach a height OF
three of four inches. 1t behooves the
farmers of this state to learn how to
select their seed to avoid this disease.
Go out into your own field on your
neighbours field, and If you can inc an
area which Is free from wilted plants.
nave 1t saved for seed. Do not put 1t
into an elevator where II will all get
mixed with diseased crnns.
Last year North Dakota produced
more iaxseed than all other states in
the Union combined. This IL con-
ditions are favorable from this date
until close of threshing time, her yield
will almost be double that of any pre-
vious year. Our farmers are rightfully
proud of the soil of the state, which
can produce more wheat than any other
state in the Unicn, Of a better quality
than the wheat Of any other state, and
at the same time produce wonderful
crops Of fax. l wish at this time, how
ever, TO call attention to the TACT that
there are some farmers in the state who
are having difficulty to raise any flax
on their land, and that there IS scarcely
any farmer in the state who has sowed
fax two or more times upon the same
| RAGSC III 6AOhAAhf II hAlAO 81 kAAAO
his fax field this year. a year which
has given the best possible conditions
for the growth OF fax, and there find
spots Of considerable area, in which all
The fax plants in the center of the
spot die early. while around the a
gin of the spot which is day by day
becoming larger, plants are dying and
will continue to die until the crop is
waaF1,ra FThary mill 1ta a q ~ hu nxtII
and dry up, and their place is taken
by pigeon grass and other weeds. This
is the disease which we have called fax
wilt. 1t is due to a fungus which is not
native to our virgin soil, but which is
introduced by way Of the seed.
When once in the ground 1t has abil-
ity to keep spreading through the soil
and the soil becomes fax sick, and no
longer able to produce a fax crop to
maturity. II you do not know how to
escape sowing this fungus int our
land, and would IKE to be amsng those
farmers Of the state who would help to
keep North Dakota the greatest fax
producing area In the world, write to
the agricultural college, n we Will
be able to give you a number OF def
mite directions which will aid you. We
do not like to be prophets of evil, in fact
do not consider ourselves such. We
believe from our experiments that a
proper rotation Of crops and a proper
method Of selecting and handling max
seed will make It possible for farm
ers in this region to continue raising
fax just in the same sense that they
would continue raising wheat. AS it
was with wheat smut and oat smut,
we Will have to night this fax disease.
and 1t is a harder n to combat be-
cause, when 1t gets into the soil II stays
there.-H. L. Boiley. Agricultural Col
lege.
Land once Business. '