desired, at the rate of from two to
three pecks an acre. A good seed crop will not be harvested if the
plants are too thick. On the other hand, if a fiber crop is to be
raised, it is desirable to plant more thickly, so that the stalks may
not branch, but run up into a single stem. From a bushel to two bushels
of seed is in this case used to an acre. Flax requires care and work
from start to finish.

When the seeds are full and plump the flax is ready for harvesting. In
America a binder is generally used for cutting the stalks. Our average
yield of flax is from eight to fifteen bushels an acre.

=Hemp.= Like flax, hemp adapts itself wonderfully to many countries and
many climates. However, in America most of our hemp is grown in
Kentucky.

[Illustration: FIG. 219. CUTTING HEMP]

Hemp needs soil rich enough to give the young plants a very rapid growth
in their early days so that they may form long fibers. To give this crop
abundant nitrogen without great cost, it should be grown in a rotation
which includes one of the legumes. Rich, well-drained bottom-lands
produce the largest yields of hemp, but uplands which have been heavily
manured make profitable yields.

The ground for hemp is prepared as for other grain crops. The seed is
generally broadcasted for a fiber crop and then harrowed in. No
cultivation is required after seeding.

If hemp is grown for seed, it is best to plant with a drill so that the
crop may be cultivated. The stalks after being cut are put in shocks
until they are dry. Then the seeds are threshed. Large amounts of hemp
seed are sold for caged birds and for poultry; it is also used for
paint-oils.

SECTION XLVII. BUCKWHEAT

Buckwheat shares with rye and cowpeas the power to make a fairly good
crop on poor land. At the same time, of course, a full crop can be
expected only from fertile land.

The three varieties most grown in America are the common gray, the
silver-hull, and the Japanese. The seeds of the common gray are larger
than the silver-hull, but not so large as the Japanese. The seeds from
the gray variety are generally regarded as inferior to the other two.
This crop is grown to best advantage in climates where the nights are
cool and moist. It matures more quickly than any other grain crop and is
remarkably free from disease. The yield varies from ten to forty bushels
an acre. Buckwheat does not seem to draw plant food heavily from the
soil and can be grown on the same land from