Normally flax is sown at the end of March or the beginning of April and is ready for harvesting in a comparatively short period of around 100 days.   Flax is harvested from the beginning of July to mid-August. 

Flax is pulled in order to preserve the full lenght of the fibres. After pulling, the strawflax is dried by spreading it out on the fields to form swatches. The process of dew retting (small bundles of the uprooted flax plant are left outdoors) can last from 1 upto 2 months and depends of the temperature and the humidity.

Retting is the decomposition of the plant with the help of micro-organisms.The straw flax has to be returned several times on the fields to become quality straw flax egally retted. 

Once the flax is optimally retted, the flax will be pressed in round bales.  In those conditions it can be conserved until scutching.