Linum usitatissimum. Flax, Prince.

Description

Linum usitatissimum. Flax, Prince.

Common name:

Industrial fibre Flax.

General:

The variety L Prince, or Liral Prince is a fibre variety that was selected by the Linen Industry Research Association (L.I.R.A.) in the 1940’s. It was used to make linen.

Benefits:

It’s popular with the bees when in flower! Flax behaves well under storage conditions. Kew’s database reveals 100% germination after 13 years stored at -20C.

Habitat:

Flax is generally self pollinating. As a fibre flax, the stems are long, reaching roughly to 1.2m when we grew it at Kilclief.

Sowing guidelines:

When the soil has warmed up in spring, sow your seeds, this is usually after the solstice. Sow 3mm deep directly into well worked, enriched soil.

Cultural history:

Flax is not a native plant, but it is intricately linked with irish history, particularly during the industrial revolution. At the turn of the 20th century almost 60% of workers in Belfast were involved in the linen industry. Flax grows well in Ireland, labour was cheap then and demand was high for the best linen in the world.
Fibre flax is known for its strength and durability. It has been used in WW2 aeroplane wings, in Bakelite and in many instances as a reinforcement to composite materials. In this it is making a resurgance today as an environmentally sound choice.
Linen is made from scutched flax, a process that has several stages in order to break down the tough components of the flax stalks so they can be made into softer strands long and flexible enough to be spun into thread.

Avg seed weight per 100 seeds = 0.5g. This is a reflection on our seed which is dried to 15%eRH (*environmental Relative Humidity).
*environmental Relative Humidity refers to the measurement of the humidity of the air that the seed is in.