A FORTUNE IN FLAX. The Need for Systematic Cultivation.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXX, Issue 11977, 21 September 1906, Page 5

A FORTUNE IN FLAX. The Need for Systematic Cultivation.

An Interview with an Expert.

The great development of the flax industry, and the fact that, as recently stated by the -Minister of Lands at Shannon, the Government intends to encourage its cultivation, led a "Herald" reporter to interview Mr. Gregor McGregor, who was this week in town on a short trip from his duties at the Christchurch Exhibition. It is said that a prophet has no honour in his own country, and it would certainly seem as if Mr. McGregor's extensive knowledge of the subject, gained after many years study, observation, and experiment, is better known and appreciated in other centres than in Wanganui. Mr. McGregor has made a hobby of flax-growing, as other men irake a hobby of growing tulips, and he has planted mnay varieties on his farm nt MaxWelltown, carefully noting all details necessary to arrive at the best results. In the first place, Mr. McGregor remarked to our reporter, th«r* is no good in planting any one variety if there are better ones, and this, therefore, leads to the obvious fact that in flax cultivation the first thing is to make a selection of the different varieties. To do this all the different varieties should be grown in experimental plots, cultivated, and carefully tested at maturity. The best dozen or half a dozen varieties should then^ be selected, and further experimented with, till by a process of continuous testing and selection absolutely the best is found. This work he considered the Government should undertake, and he pointed out that if it distributed the seed of the best proved plants, this would carry an absolute guarantee of good germinating power, and, what is more important, the variety best calculated to give a good quality of fibre.

Assuming that the farmer is in a position to plant the best kind of plants, his part, said Mr. McGregor, should lie in systematic cultivation. Asked to define this, Mr. McGregor gave the very practical answer that, as in the case of other plants, it meant nothing more than good farming; regular tilling, and keeping the plants free of weeds was all that was required, adding that there was no other native plant that responded so readily as flax, or grew so luxuriantly and quickly.

This naturally led to the question of what value the crop would be to the farmer, which was answered by Mr. McGregor in the significant sentence, " Every man with a hundred acres of flax is worth .£IOOO a year." He proceeded to explain that much of the fibre now milled was of inferior quality, for the reason* that the leaf was cut before it came to maturity. To obtain full growth and quality the plants should be allowed to grow without cutting for from three to five years, according to quality of the soil, after which the leaf could be cut from the same plant every year. It was most important, however, that only the mature leaves should be cut, leaving the immature to continue their growth. This, of course, meant a smaller cutting, but it was more than counterbalanced by a more valuable and uniform quality, because the flax cut would be all of the Fane ng-e, and he pointed out that the uniformity of the quality was too often utterly spoiled under pre^nt conditions by reason of the fibre of one, two. or thrw> yerr leares bpinj- mixed together m the one hnnk.

Tn reply to a qpiory ob to th<» suitability of Wcngnnui bud f^r the plnnf; Wr. "tff-(rr'-por "remmkod tli.it eveiy bit of rounfrv round liorr- wouM grov.- {lax, cvt n t'-o lull side?, whttv indeed the be=;t fibre, was gon> rally fomul. Tho idea that swamp lands ■wvrc the most suitable w-a«» a fallary; as long: as the soil was not too ■sandy and dry, it would grow well. Flax was a surface feeder, and so long as the soil was fairly rich that was ajl that was required, though it must not be thought that rich soil of necessity meant more c stronger fibre. Remembering the large areas of poor land on the coast and in the interior, tbe pressman asked whether flax could be grown in sand, or on the pumice plains around Taupo. In regard to sand, Mr. McGregor said the plant certainly would grow in it, but without judicious manuring it would take longer and would not stand the same cutting. As to pumice, if the subsoil did~not lie too deep for the roots to reach it, flax could also be grown on it.

Mr. McGregor is very sanguine as to the possibilities of flax and the uses to which it may be put, and considers that before long other countries will probably find the advantages to be derived from making it a leading crop, and perhaps leave New Zealand behind in the production of her own plant. The matter was already being taken up in Australia, and he predicted that in 20 years there would be more growing in the U.S.A. and in South America than in the whole of New Zealand, while with improved machinery the fibre will be used for purposes not now dreamt of. There were two essentials required, the selection of the best varieties, and improved methods of dressing, the latter of which are practically the same as those of 50 years ago. In regard to improved machinery, Mr. McGregor considered that the Government should offer a bonus of not less than ,£SOOO for a machine to dress the fibre up to a certain standard to be laid down by a committee of experts. If the best invention were not up to the standard, then it should be paid for by results, that is, the value of the improvement, whether .£4OO, £1000, or any other figure, should be assessed and paid for. Five thousand might appear a big sum, but if an invention were up to the standard laid down, it would probably prove the beet investment the Government had ever mode, and in any case no invention would cost more than it was worth.

Our reporter asked Mr. McGregor hie opinion of the proposal of the Minister of Lands that the question, of inqury into the best varieties and experiment with the same, should be handed over to the Science Department of Canterbury College. Mr. McGregor agreed that in some respects it was a good idea, and would be an admirable thing for the students, but he thought that it would take too long, and the matter had already been too much delayed. The Government should take the matter up whole-heartedly and continue the experiments already being made in the plantations at Levin and at Ruakura (Waikato), thus saving much valuable time. The Minister of Lands was fully alive to the importance of the industry, and he hoped for much from his evidently sympathetic attitude. In regard to Canterbury College, he- thought that many and valuable results would ensue from microscopical research, and in this direction the efforts of the College staff and students should prove of inestimable value. The microscope would play a very valuable part in the industry, particularly in detecting what varieties contained most waste material, and in leading to the utilisation of by-products, a branch that as yet was almost entirely neglected.

In the course of a few general remark*. Mr. McGregor^aid the greatest, enemk* to tho ll.ix plani were the couch or twitch tjiaii. nml f>oi"'l. and Ik instanced this •i- i<»intiiiir 'i.i t|,( ii. -mI f«.r thorough < iiit ,' .it' hi. v.. 1 iv |i' i , ( i 1 pLintfc five u.,m v,tt<!«> It was'«|iii»e a mistake to suppose that one could plough a bit of rough country, and then leave the plants to t.ike care of themselves. The final question was as to whether the plants would ultimately exhaust the soil, in reply to which Mr. McGregor said that, as far as he had been able to gather, h« thought not, or at the least they would not do so for many years,, concluding with the remark that research and experience would ultimately show the way to deal with the matter.