Linen flax in Western Australia

FLAX as an economic crop has a fairly brief history in Australia and a much shorter one in Western Australia. The earliest records show that it was first grown near Geelong in Victoria in 1863 and in South Australia at Hydock in 1870. Early attempts to grow flax economically were not very successful and it was not until 1935 that any major progress was made. Flax Fibres Pty. Ltd., established a small flax-growing industry in Victoria but the outbreak of World War II necessitated a much more rapid expansion in Australia than was ever anticipated and the Commonwealth Flax Production Committee took over all growing and processing in Australia