The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1911-01-20


west than Prof. HI. L. Bolley of the
North Dakota Agricultural college, and
his address delivered today at the Tri-
State Grain Growers convention was
one Of the best Of the meeting. He
spoke on Who Can Help Save the Flax
Crop.
Prof H. L. Bolley said: We have,
by our experiments and other previous
writings. shown the peculiar conditions
which surround the flax crop in the
northwest. believe that the only con-
clusion that can be drawn from our
observations and from our study as
to the history of the crop is that I'M
less the farmers and all other persons
interested take up a special interest in
the matter the crop is pretty liable to
! be lost to the growers and to the in
dustries of this portion of the country
| just as it has been in the other seed
flax growing districts
Flax seed is very scarce this year
and great care should be taken by all
those who contemplate sowing seed
that they do not make use of seed Of
such poor quality as to result not only
in loss of yield but in injuring their
land for fax in future years.
Flax does not hurt the land for other
crops. Flax does not particularly
reduce the chemical quality of the
land, but bad fax seed does carry with
it germs of disease which may lessen
the yield the first year and greatly in
jure the crop afterwards.
1t is worth while to make this crop
a permanent feature in our cropping
system here in the northwest, The
| industries of the United States have
been using approximately 25,000,0O0
to S0,O00,000 Of bushels of seed every
year. They could I, next year easily
make use of 40.oOO,OO0 bushels of seed.
If this 100000 bushels of seed is not
raised in this country it will be to the
disadvantage not only of the farmers
who fail to grow it, bur to everyone
who has to use oil, paint, linoleum, oil
cloth, linseed meal, printers ink and
many other products Of great useful
ness.
Is it not worth while to ask our
selves, who can help to save the flax
crop? Is it wise for everyone to say
"that it is the farmers business %
Let us see who might help:
The Scotsman.
I'D There is the scotsman, the man
whose business it is to sell pure seed
for cropping purposes. 1t is greatly
to his interest that the farmers of the
region in which he lives should get
large yields aud profitable returns per
acre. The scotsman can help save the
flax crop by a special effort to procure
and sell flax seed of bright and plump
| aIxy
seed and weed seeds as possible.
Elevator Men.
(2.) The elevator men. Their in
dustry is based upon the storage of tile
farmers crops The elevator men can
help save the fax crop, The elevator
agent and the various employers of
elevator men are in close touch with
the flax growers of every town, espec-
tally SO in the northwest. They are in
a position to meet the farmers as they
come to the elevator and talk to them
in regard to what ought to be done
in order TO save the fax crop. Not
only that, elevator men sell much seed
They buy flax seed from one farmer
and perhaps mix it with the seed
grown by other farmers and sell il
back to other farmers for sowing pur-
poses. The elevator man can, if he
will find the best crop In the neighbor-
hood and save that for seed and sci
only seed OF good quality to newcomers
into the region. The profits of the
companies would be direct in returns
due to larger storage demands by the
crop and in the fact that farmers
prospecting in the growth of flax, viii
also tend to prosper in the growth OF
other crops. Farmers cannot succeed
without a sufficient number of genera
crops to make decent rotation.
The Farm Implement Men.
CD The farm implement man car
help save the flax crop. What can they
do? They can see to it that in every
neighborhood in which they do bust
ness they have ready for sale t.
farmers tanning mills Of the best type
for cleaning flax seed. Flax seed, In
the past, has been great source o.
kntroducing weed seeds, and because
the flax seed has not been properly
graded and treated it has carried will
it all kinds of diseases which the
fax roots are heir to and thus the
land gradually gets befouled and in ar
unsanitary condition. The farm ma
chinery, or implement men, by having
in stock proper spraying machines, fol
treating flax seed and proper tanning
mills for grading it, and by talking x
their farmer patrons can do the farmel
a genuine favor, Any man who sells
to farmer a good tanning mill is no
only benefit to the farmer but to tbs
neighborhood provided he can induce
the farmer TO use 1t. Again the i'm
mediate returns of the machinery mer
viii depend upon the prosperity Of thu
! farmer.
Druggists.
(4) The druggists can help save thu
! flax crop. They can not do it by sell
, ling TO the farmer cheap grades Of for.
! maldehyde for treating the seed, bu
/. they can do it by keeping good stool
Of best quality and by sending litera'
j ture to every farmer in his neighbor.
hood telling him that he has it ant
advising him as to its use.
/ Hardware Man.
Co., The hardware merchant comes