The tow
should give you short soft fibers from what I learned from the links you posted. It will be interesting to see how long the fibers will be from my flax.
The
video of flax harvest in Ireland showed the old method of retting in shallow ponds with the bundles tied with reeds. I have shallow ponds with reed growing on the edges. I want to try rice in the ponds this year so I filled the ponds with the flax and weeds as I mowed. I did not tie it in bundles but I will observe how the flax stems have retted when I pull it out and use it for
mulch in the orchard.
I would like some feedback on how it works. Our
local fiber arts show organizer has heirloom flax processing tools and I gave them a bundle of flax to put with the exhibit but at the time neither of us knew about retting. Soif the perennial flax seems viable perhaps my field could be a resource for the local artisans.