General Products Division

The following terms as given under the authority of the Ministry of Supply, are reprinted here with their permission. Flax Plants - of the species Linum usitatissimum cultivated for the production of seed or fibre or both. Flax, Fibre (Fibre Flax) - The variety of flax cultivated mainly for fibre production. Flax, fibre strands, or bundles - The aggregates, about 32 in number, of ultimate fibres which run from the level of the seed leaves up to the top of the branches of the flax straw. They are each composed of large numbers of ultimate fibres overlapping each other. Flax Fibres, Ultimate - The component cellulose fibres, about 1¹/₄-in. long by 1/1000-in. wide, making up the fibre system of the flax straw. Flax, Linseed - The variety of flax cultivated mainly for seed production. Flax Seed - The term usually applied to the seed of fibre flax. A bag of flax seed in Ireland is sometimes 3¹/₂ bushels, but it is more usual now to put up seed in 1-cwt. bags as in England. A peck of flax seed weighs approximately 14-lb. Flax Seed, Blue Blossom - Seed of a blue-flowered variety of flax. Flax Seed, Commercial - Flax seed usually named after its country or place of origin, but without a pedigree and without guarantee as to colour of flower. Flax Seed Germination - That percentage by number of a sample of seed which shows visible signs of growth within a stated time when kept under standard conditions of temperature and moisture. Flax Seed Germination, Standard - An arbitrary standard of germination of 90 per cent or more, incorporated in the flax growers' contract of the Ministry of Supply. Flax Seed, Lital - The generic name given to pedigree flax seed of several strains bred by the Linen Industry Research Association, Lambeg, and derived from those initials. Flax Seed, Minty - Seed which has been attacked by species of mites, usually owing to it being cracked and too damp. It is characterised by a dusty appearance and a distinct musty sweet smell. Flax Seed, Mixed Blue Blossom - A term used in Northern Ireland for seed from two or more blue-blossomed pedigree flaxes mixed together. Flax Seed, Pedigree - Seed of a strain of flax which has been improved by some recognised system of flax breeding and originally derived from the bulking of the seed from a single flax plant. Flax Seed, Plimmed - A local term for seed which has swollen through excess of moisture. Flax Seed Purity - That percentage by weight of seed taken from bulk which consists of whole flax seeds. Flax Seed Purity, Standard - An arbitrary standard of purity of 96 per cent or more with a weed seed content of 0.25 per cent or less, incorporated in the flax growers' contract of the Ministry of Supply. Flax Seed, Sowing - Seed of a germination and, purity making it acceptable for sowing. Flax Seed, Stormont - The generic name given to pedigree flax seed produced by the Plant Breeding Division, Ministry of Agriculture, Northern Ireland. Flax Seed, Weight per 1,000 - The weight in grams of 1,000 flax seeds picked at random from a sample. It is used as a measure of the plumpness and general quality of seed. Flax Seed, White Blossom - Seed of a white-flowered variety of flax. Flax Variety, Cross breeding - A method of flax breeding, based on fertilising the seed of a single plant of one strain by the pollen of a single plant of another strain and the study of the progeny. Flax Variety, Single Plant Selection - A method of flax breeding based on the study of a single self-fertilised flax plant and its progeny in subsequent generations. Linseed - The seed of linseed flax: and also of fibre flax when it is used for the same purposes as linseed. Moisture Content - To conform with the International ruling for seed testing the moisture content of flax seed should be expressed as a percentage of the original weight; the moisture content of other flax products being expressed as a percentage of the dry weight. Nomersan - A proprietary powder for dusting on flax seed as a prevention of certain seed-bome fungal diseases. Pickle - The term often applied to a single flax seed, i.e., a sample of seed is said to he of a large pickle or a small pickle. Weed Seed - The seed of any other species of plant present in a sample of flax seed.