29 Jul Scientific cultivation of linseed
अलसी की वैज्ञानिक खेती Flax is an oldest grown fiber crop in the world. It is a self pollinated crop and the scientific name of flax is Linum usitatissimum L. (n= 15) Usitatissimum means ‘most useful’. Synonyms of flax are Linseed, Common flax, Lint bells, Toad flax, Flax weed and Alsi (in hindi). It belongs to the family Linaceae and genus Linum. Most believed that flax originated from Mediterranean Sea near India. Flax is an annual herbaceous plant of 12 to 48 inches height, leaves are linear, ovate or lanceolate attenuated at both end , flowers are small about 2.5 cm long and bluish violet in colour. The flowers have five petals; flowers are self-pollinated, although cross pollination is possible. The fruit is a round capsule, divided into five chambers and each chamber containing up to two seeds of yellow or brown colour (at maturity). Flax (Linseed) is a dual purpose crop grown for fiber and oil. The fiber obtained from the stem of flax type and oil from the seeds of linseed type. The flax seed contain 37 to 43 % oil. Most of the oil is used for manufacturing paints, varnishes, soaps, ink and very small amount of oil is used for edible purposes. Flax is cultivated in maximum part of India,...