Flax health of linseed oil. Eventually, Flanders became the major center of the linen industry in the European Middle Ages. In North America, flax was introduced by the colonists and it flourished there, but by the early 20th century, cheap cotton and rising farm wages had caused production of flax to become concentrated in northern Russia, which came to provide 90% of the world's output. Since then, flax has lost its importance as a commercial crop, due to the easy availability of more durable fibres. Flax is grown for its seeds, which can be ground into a meal or turned into
Flax weevil Flax weevil The flax weevil ("Anagotus fairburni") is a large flightless weevil. It was discovered by E. Fairburn in 1931 on D'Urville Island. The weevil is known to live on New Zealand flax ("Phormium tenax"), feeding on leaves, where it produces a characteristic feeding notch. The weevil is a large, nocturnal, flightless weevil ranging in length from 20 to 25mm. Although considered a coastal species, the flax weevil has been found in the Tararua Range on Phormium cookianum, a mountain flax. It is possible that other remnant populations survive in other mountain ranges. However, due to predation by mammals, it