The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1911-03-17
All Get Ready For
Seeding Of Grain
Important Questions Answered as to
Work to be Done on the Farm
When Sowing Flax

PROFESSOR bOlley OF tne Agrl.
cultural college has given farmers
many good ideas worth following.
He answers all questions asked
bim as will be seen by the follow,
ing.
Professor BolIey has received q
letter from farmer near Ashley,
N. D., asking whether it is desira-
BILE to harrow the fax crop after it
is up, the same as wheat. There
are many people asking this same
and the answer given as
follows:
'Dear Sir. You can hardly use
the same methods with fax as
with wheat; even greater care
should be taken in the preparation
of the seed bed. As to narrowing
after the grain is up, I thought
best to make no definite RECON-
mendation regarding that point.
Many farmers have not as yet
learned how to harrow wheat, oats
and barley, and I feel rather sure
that many of them would do
damage to the flax with the har-
row. Any young flax plant which
is broken off by the harrow is a
dead flax plant thereafter, while
often the injury to the top of the
wheat and other grains only in
creases its after growth from the
root.
"Under certain conditions q very
light scratching of the soil might
be advantages, especially when
there is much more fax sowed
than should have been. The loss
of a few plants would be more
than made up by the better con-
dition Of the soil brought about by
the narrowing. Generally speak
ing, however, I believe fax is too
delicate a crop to stand narrowing
to any great extent. Some farm
ers under certain conditions of
soil and having the proper tools,
might benefit their crop, but more
would be apt to injure it.
Regarding the treatment of flax
seed, if you read the circular care
fully, you will see that we specif-
cally state that all fax should be
treated before sowing. We have
never examined sample here that
did not contain a Notwithstanding
fungus. No matter how bright
and plump the sample might be,
we have found this to be the case."
Another farmer from near
Rhame, N. D., writes: II had fax
on new breaking last year and it
got frosted-did not get much of
q crop. Would you plow the land
or disk it, and would you SOW fax
or wheat on it?"
The answer given was as follows:
Dear Sir: The best crop you
can place on the land this year is
wheat. If you try to plow that
land which was newly broken last
year, you will make q very rough
seed bed and without a very great
cost cannot get it into shape for
sowing. It has been the general
experience that fax on new break.
ing, followed by wheat, gives good
results with the. wheat sowed after
q very thorough disking and har-
rowing. I recommend disking
such ground in the fall as soon as
the flax is of and doing it again
in the spring. You probably
have not done the fall disking, but
if you will getat itsas soon as you
can get on the ground, and do a
thorough job q disking, followed
BY thorough harr owing, you will
have q good seed bed for wheat.
Remember that when / say
disking lido not mean :just runn-
ing the disk over il once OF twice
70 tear up ! littlsloo dirt; Imean
that the work should be done as
thoroughly as possible.