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Linum usitatissimum

Authority	(L.) Griesb.
Family	Magnoliopsida:Rosidae:Linales:Linaceae
Synonyms
Common names	Endabé, Entati, flax, linseed, Talba, Telba, yama
Editor
Ecocrop code	7336

Notes
DESCRIPTION: A slender, erect, wiry, greyish-green herb usually with blue, sometimes white flowers reaching from 75-120 cm in height. USES: The plant provides fiber and oil. Long fibers are used for linen cloth and short fibers are used to make cigarette, book, currency paper and other fine-textured paper. The oil is used in veterinary medicine, paints, varnishes, printer's ink, soaps, painting and varnishes, cooking, and the can be applied as a poultice to burns and scalds, or used internally as a mild laxative. It is also used in a mixture as an antiscaling compound to protect cement. Seed residues are used as cattle feed. KILLING T.: Seedlings may survive -6 to -11°C, but mature plants may not tolerate frost. GROWING PERIOD: Annual. Unbranched types can be harvested 80-140 days from sowing and branched types after 140-180 days. COMMON NAMES: Flax, Linseed, Lin, Tetard, Lino. FURTHER INF.: Flax is most probably native to western Asia. The principal flax production area lie between latitudes 49-53°N. It requires uniformly moderate to cool temperatures and a relative humidity around 60-70% during the growing period. During the period approaching harvest, warm dry weather is desirable. A hot dry summer generally produces a short and harsh fiber, whereas a moderately moist summer yields fine, strong but silky flax. In cool-temperate regions straw yields of up to 6-7 t/ha and seed yields of about 1 t/ha can be expected.
Sources
Sims D (pers. comm.) Roecklein J 1987 pp 120 [USE] Dube P 1982 pp 10 Hartmann T 1981 pp 530-531 [USE, TEMP, RAIN] Rehm S 1991 pp 117 355 [USE] Maas E 1990 pp 271 Dempsey J 1975 pp 3-45 [PHO, RAIN, LIG, DEP, LIMIT, KTMP, FER, PH, TEXT, DRA] Duke J 1975 pp 20 [PH, RAIN, TEMP] Kernick M 1961 pp 239 361 Langer R 1991 pp 294 Kirkby R 1963 pp 15-45 [TEMP, DRA, TEXT, DEP, USE]