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Project

Controlled retting of flax

The current dew-rooting process for flax is weather dependent and therefore difficult to control. This can lead to serious yield and quality losses of the long flax fibers. That is why the flax growers are looking for a sustainable, ecologically sound and low-budget way to control the rooting process more. With this research we want to test new insights into retting, knowledge of various partners and possible options against sustainability, economic costs and operational scalability. Especially 2 possible options will be highlighted here, namely the application of fungi or the application of enzymes on the field just after uprooting to get the rooting process going faster. Ideally, retting starts immediately after the flax wears down and stops once most of the pectin has disappeared and the cellulose is not broken down. It will therefore be important to find the ideal fungus or enzyme. In the end, we want to have a roadmap ready for additional research or, ideally, already a concrete manual of a possible technique for controlling retting.

Date:1 Jan 2021 →  31 Dec 2022
Keywords:retting, flax, fungus, enzyme, low-budget, sustainable
Disciplines:Agricultural plant production not elsewhere classified, Microbiology not elsewhere classified