PA Flax Project

10/30/2026

In our last post, we discussed how once harvested and retted, our fiber flax is carefully baled in preparation for processing.

In our pre-mill years, our bales are being stored indoors in a dry space for up to 2 years. It's important to keep it dry because moisture in the bales would degrade fiber quality.

Having adequate storage for retted straw is one important aspect of our mill design.

10/30/2026

10/26/2026

Every stage of the flax to linen process has to be precise for it to be successful.

After flax is pulled and field retted, it is round baled in preparation for stage one processing, otherwise known as scutching. We always keep the stems parallel to one another, with all of the seed ends on one side and the roots on the other, taking care not to bend the stems of the flax. A flax baler is unique, it has two strings that go throughout each bale creating even layers, like a cinnamon roll. These even layers of straw are important in preparation for the flax to feed into the breakers (the first step at the scutching mill). Additionally, when moving flax bales, you must use a bale grabber to avoid piercing the bale and breaking the flax stems.

All of these methods prevent damage to the fiber by preventing the stems from breaking. Without these precise steps, the fiber would yield more tow than long line fiber, which would decrease the value of the harvest.

10/19/2026

Our progress towards scaling fiber flax agriculture in Pennsylvania continues to be steady. 2025 and 2026 have been pivotal years building on the groundwork we laid from 2020 - 24 and accelerating scaling agriculture as we enter our mill development phase.

From 2020 - 2024, we planted small plots as we evaluated the viability of fiber flax in our region. 2025 found us celebrating 32 acres and offered all the lessons that come from a first year of scaling into double digit acreage. In 2026, we are celebrating a successful harvest of 45 acres of fiber flax in PA. Achieving this year's harvest is a major milestone and is the result of a lot of planning, a strong international network and support from our funders.

In 2025, we grew 32 acres of fiber flax across 3 locations and celebrated our first mechanized harvest in Pennsylvania in a generation and possibly ever. With funding from the Commonwealth Specialty Crop Block Grant, we hosted Davey Van Broek and his father Theo, "flax men" from the Netherlands, to work with our team. They came ahead of the harvest to train our team on operation and field maintenance of our specialized harvesting equipment. With an eye towards the future, we had Drew Oberholtzer film training videos, an invaluable asset as our team grows.We were able to successfully harvest a portion of our 2025 crop despite late planting due to seed order arrival, challenging weather and our specialized flax baler needing in season repairs.

2025 was a year of learning and we brought that knowledge forward into our 2026 growing season. Our seed order arrived in early March ahead of our planting date and our planting was complete on all 3 of our farms by April 15th. Our harvesting equipment was serviced and at the ready in May, more than two months ahead of our harvest. Our team reviewed the training videos. Supported once again by the commonwealth specialty crop grant, we hosted Joan Galle and Alber VanHauwaert to work in the fields with us during pulling and turning and we successfully took 45 acres of fiber flax from seed to bale in Pennsylvania. We are poised for our next step - planting up to 300 acres of fiber flax in Pennsylvania in 2027.

10/07/2026

Join PA Flax Project as we continue our fall events.

Coming up next is part two of our webinar series with the Rodale Institute delving into fiber flax: Harvesting, Post Harvest Handling & Marketing of Fiber Flax.

In this session, our CEO, Heidi Barr, will cover what it takes to harvest fiber flax - from pulling, retting, and turning, as well as post-harvest handling. We’ll discuss equipment considerations and explore the market potential for fiber flax and what growers should be thinking about beyond the field.

Funding for these events was made possible in part by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service through the Organic Market Development Grant awarded to PA Flax Project. Funding was also made possible by the Transition to Organic Partnership Program. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the USDA.

10/02/2026

Flax is a low nitrogen crop.

Fiber flax’s total crop uptake of nitrogen is only ~80 lbs per acre (compared to corn’s ~180 lbs per acre). In most circumstances, flax’s demand for nitrogen can be met by the nitrogen in the soil itself – through mineralization of organic matter, residual nitrate from prior crops, and cover crop decomposition.

The fertilizer application is only the gap between what the soil supplies and what the crop needs. On many fields, particularly those with active organic matter and a cover crop history, that gap for fiber flax is small or zero. This greatly reduces the need for synthetic nitrogen fertilizer application. Less synthetic fertilizer means lower input costs, making fiber flax a good economic choice for Pennsylvania's farmers.

09/28/2026

Join the PA Flax Project and Friends of FDR Park for a hand-processing event alongside their cultural markets!

Join us and learn how fiber flax is both historically rooted in Pennsylvania, and how it remains relevant to the modern sustainable textiles market. Our expert Director of Sales and Education will be on hand to answer all your questions.

09/24/2026

Fall 2026 is hitting the ground running: We have two events coming up later this week! Both events are at historical sites that share a mission of preserving our region's history. Flax Linen is part of that history, and we're excited to demonstrate how residents of both estates might have processed flax into golden spinnable fiber in the 18th and early 19th centuries.

Wyck Historic House, Garden, and Farm in Germantown, Philadelphia, had flax spinning tools and woven linen pieces in their collection dating back to the 18th century, and made by the original residents of the estate. We've been offering programming with them since 2022 and are thrilled to be beginning this year's 3 event series with them tomorrow.

Kennett Heritage Center is having us join them as part of their Colonial Fibers Project this Sunday. Alongside our demo, Lynn Sinclair will be giving a brief talk about the Underground Railroad in Kennett Square, as well as a general history of the town.

Join us and learn how fiber flax is both historically trotted in Pennsylvania and remains relevant to the modern sustainable textiles market. Our expert Director of sales and education will be on hand to answer all your questions.

09/14/2026

We have a Flax Story from our very own Janell Wysock, Director of Sales and Education here at the Pennsylvania Flax Project!

Janell's history with textiles began as a small child in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, when her grandmother gave her scraps of fabric to play with while making macramé hangers. Even then, Janell could tell the difference between synthetic and natural fibers, but of course didn’t yet have the knowledge of what this distinction meant. “I did know that I had a strong preference for the natural textiles, and particularly linen.” she said. This fascination led her to study and eventually work at Moore College of Art & Design, as well as develop her own knits and wovens business.

Folks have cultivated and transformed the flax plant in Pennsylvania since it arrived with the German and Dutch settlers in the 1690s. Janell's Flax Story shines a light on how flax remains relevant for Pennsylvanians today, and you can read the rest of it on our blog. Do you have a connection to flax? Tell us in the comments or send a private message!

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09/11/2026

Join the flax experts on our team at Newlin Grist Mill's Fall Festival NEXT WEEKEND!

We'll offer a hands-on demonstration of how flax straw is transformed into spinnable fiber. Experience this sustainable fiber up close and personal, talk to us about our plans for a commercial scale mill, and our efforts towards a shift in our modern material culture. We hope you'll leave inspired!

Admission to the festival is free, but parking is $10 per car. Additional costs may apply for certain activities as well as food vendors. Shuttle buses between the parking area and the festival site will run every 15 minutes throughout the event.