Manual of flax culture, comprising full information on the cultivation, management, and marketing of the crop . e spreading, which is performedchiefly by women and girls, but sometimes alsoby men, should commence at the same time thatthe carts commence to drop the beets all over thefield, as, if allowed to dry in the beet, the flax doesnot separate freely. Each spreader—standingwith her back to the wind, if there is any; but ifcalm, towards that point whence the prevailingwinds come—takes an open beet on her left arm,from which she takes a handful, lays it down onthe grass, root end next herse
Manual of flax culture, comprising full information on the cultivation, management, and marketing of the crop . e spreading, which is performedchiefly by women and girls, but sometimes alsoby men, should commence at the same time thatthe carts commence to drop the beets all over thefield, as, if allowed to dry in the beet, the flax doesnot separate freely. Each spreader—standingwith her back to the wind, if there is any; but ifcalm, towards that point whence the prevailingwinds come—takes an open beet on her left arm,from which she takes a handful, lays it down onthe grass, root end next herself, and spreads itwith the right hand, very evenly, and so thin thatthe grass can be seen all through it, and in a per-fectly straight row, running from right to left ofthe iSeld, keeping each row a few paces in ad-vance of the other as in fig. 23, and the tops of each row overlapping the roots of the preceedingone about two inches; this slight overlap is agreat protection against wind, and as there is nofibre on the roots it is of no injury to the any little locks be left unseparated, they. Fiar. 23. may not dry evenly, or if they do, the flax, whendressed, will present a streaky unevenness incolor, from unequal bleaching, hence the necessi-ty of even spreading. If the directions under thehead of Rippling have been attended to, thespreaders will find no diflSculty in separating thehandfuls, without any tangling or dragging ofstalks. Some recommend turning the flax afterlying a few days on the grass, which is done byrunning ash wands under it, and turning it rightover its root end, but if spread sufficiently thinand evenly, this operation may be dispensed withaltogether, and indeed with advantage sometimes,in case of wind, for if ouce moved on the grass,the flax never lies so close again and is very aptto catch the wind and be blown about. Tuiniing ianever practiced in the best flax districts in bands, as they are taken off the beets, arethrown on th
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, bookpublishernewyo, bookyear1883
