The purpose of this article is to conduct a comparative study of existing varieties and collection samples of fibre flax according to such traits as «overall plant height», «technical stem length», «seed productivity», «fibre content in stems», «fibre quality», and «lodging resistance». The relevance of the topic is due to the fact that modern breeding science faces the task of creating fibre flax varieties that ensure high yields of fibre and seeds, improved product quality, and resistance to diseases, lodging, and environmental stress factors. To develop such varieties, it is necessary to have suitable starting material and reliable breeding methods, especially at the early stages.

It has been proven that one of the main directions of work is breeding for fibre yield in fibre flax. The trait «fibre content in stems» is one of the key economically valuable characteristics of fibre flax, determining its productivity and total yields. It has been established that another direction of breeding work concerns the development of varieties with high fibre content in stems and favourable physico-mechanical properties for spinning. For fibre flax, increasing seed productivity in new varieties is also of great importance. By selecting varieties and samples from the collection that have valuable traits and including them in crossbreeding, it is possible to produce high-yielding varieties in terms of seed productivity.

It has been established that one of the main traits ensuring high yields of fibre and seeds and preventing a decline in their quality is high lodging resistance of the crop stand. Lodging sharply reduces the yield of straw, fibre, and seeds, and most importantly, worsens their quality. Based on this, breeding new lodging-resistant fibre flax varieties is one of the most important tasks in breeding.

1.Aniskova, T. S. (1978). Len-dolgunets. Selektsiya tehnicheskih i kormovyih kultur [Flax. Selection of industrial and forage crops]. Kiev: Urozhay, (pp. 42–59) [In Russian].2.Afonin, M. I., & Pryigun, V. S. (1978). K voprosu o svyazi anatomicheskogo stroeniya steblya lna s kachestvom volokna [On the issue of the relationship between the anatomical structure of the flax stem and the quality of the fiber]. Zemledelie i rastenievodstvo v BSSR. Sb. nauchnyih trudov. Minsk: Uradzhay, issue 22, pp. 165–173 [In Russian].3.Afonin, M. I., & Pryigun, V. S. (1981). Ishodnyiy material dlya selektsii lna na povyishenie voloknistosti [Source material for flax breeding to increase fiber content]. Zemledelie i rastenievodstvo v BSSR. Sbornik nauchnyih trudov. Minsk: Uradzhay, issue 25, pp. 7–9 [In Russian].4.Bartseva, A. A. (1973). Ustoychivost k poleganiyu i anatomicheskoe stroenie steblya lna-dolguntsa [Lodging resistance and anatomical structure of the flax stem]. Selektsiya i semenovodstvo – Selection and seed production, no. 1, pp. 37–38 [In Russian].5.Bobrov, S. A., & Vyugina, G. V. (1986). Formyi ishodnogo materiala dlya selektsii lna dolguntsa v Smolenskoy oblasti [Forms of source material for selection of flax in Smolensk region]. In book: Puti povyisheniya effektivnosti ispolzovaniya proizvodstvennogo potentsiala selskogo hozyaystva Smolenskoy oblasti v svete resheniy 27 s'ezda KPSS. Tezisyi dokladov nauchno-prakticheskoy konferentsii [Ways to improve the efficiency of using the production potential of agriculture in the Smolensk region in light of the decisions of the 27th Congress of the CPSU. Abstracts of reports of the scientific and practical conference], no. 87, pp. 147–150 [In Russian].6.Vyrovets, V. H., Lohinov, M. I., Chuchvaha, V. I., & Mukovoz, V. Yu. (2000). Kataloh ukrainskoi kolektsii lonu-dovhuntsia [Catalogue of the Ukrainian long-stemmed flax collection]. Hlukhiv, issue 2, pp. 3–60 [In Ukrainian].

7. Gayzhyunene, M. M., Davidyan, G. G., Yarosh, N. P., & Ryikova, R. P. (1985). Rezultatyi izucheniya kollektsii lna-dolguntsa v usloviyah Litovskoy SSR [Results of the study of the flax collection in the conditions of the Lithuanian SSR]. Selektsiya, semenovodstvo i tehnologiya vozdelyivaniya lubyanyih kultur – Selection, seed production and cultivation technology of bast crops. Moskva: Agropromizdat, pp. 28–30 [In Russian].
8. Davidyan, G. G., Ryikova, R. P., & Kutuzova, S. N. (1975). Novyiy ishodnyiy material dlya selektsii lna-dolguntsa [New source material for flax breeding]. Len i konoplya – Flax and hemp, no. 1, pp. 24–25 [In Russian].
9. Davidyan, G. G., & Strukov, A. V. (1976). Agrobiologicheskaya otsenka novyih zarubezhnyih obraztsov lna-dolguntsa v Pskovskoy oblasti [Agrobiological assessment of new foreign samples of flax in the Pskov region]. Trudyi po prikladnoy botanike, genetike i selektsii – Works on applied botany, genetics and selection, Vol. 48, issue 3, pp. 218–233 [In Russian].
10. Davidyan, G. G., & Sharov, I. Ya. (1975). Otsenka kollektsionnyih obraztsov lna-dolguntsa dlya selektsionnogo ispolzovaniya [Evaluation of collection samples of flax for breeding use]. Trudyi po prikladnoy botanike, genetike i selektsii – Works on applied botany, genetics and selection, Vol. 55, issue 1, pp. 3–20 [In Russian].
11. Dmitrieva, A. I. (1954). Lnyanoe volokno [Flax fiber]. In book: Spravochnik po zavodskoy pervichnoy obrabotke lna [Handbook of factory primary processing of flax]. Moskva: Gizlegprom, pp. 369–384 [In Russian].
12. Dolgov, B. S., & Kovalev, V. B. (1978). Morfologicheskiy analiz rasteniy. Anatomicheskiy analiz rasteniy lna [Morphological analysis of plants. Anatomical analysis of flax plants]. In book: Metodicheskie ukazaniya po provedeniyu polevyih opyitov so lnom-dolguntsom [Guidelines for conducting field experiments with flax]. Torzhok, pp. 46–51 [In Russian].
13. Ivanova, R. M., & Matveev, N. D. (1960). Vyisokoe soderzhanie volokna v solome – nepremennoe svoystvo horoshego selektsionnogo sorta lna-dolguntsa [High fiber content in straw is an essential property of a good selection variety of fiber flax]. Len i konoplya – Flax and hemp, no. 1, pp. 26–29 [In Russian].
14. Klochkov, V. N., & Voronova, V. G. (1961). Ishodnyiy material dlya selektsii lna dolguntsa [Source material for selection of flax]. Selektsiya i semenovodstvo – Selection and seed production, no. 3, pp. 48–49 [In Russian].
15. Klochkov, N. V., Malyih, P. V., & Rogash, A. R. (1963). Selektsiya lna-dolguntsa [Selection of flax]. In book: Selektsiya i semenovodstvo lna-dolguntsa [Breeding and seed production of flax]. Moskva, pp. 27–93 [In Russian].
16. Kozlov, M. I., & Matveev, N. D. (1936). Sovremennoe sostoyanie metodiki selektsii lna-dolguntsa i osnovnyie zadachi [Current state of flax breeding methods and main tasks]. In book: Voprosyi metodiki selektsii lna-dolguntsa [Questions of the flax breeding methodology]. Leningrad, pp. 3–20 [In Russian].
17. Krepkov, A. P., Michkina, G. A., & Tokareva, N. B. (1987). Kollektsiya lna v Sibiri [Linen collection in Siberia]. Len i konoplya – Flax and hemp, no. 2, p. 30 [In Russian].
18. Kryilova T. V., & Ulyanova N. P. (1977). Ishodnyiy material dlya selektsii lna-dolguntsa [Source material for selection of flax]. Len i konoplya – Flax and hemp, no. 10, p. 27 [In Russian].
19. Kudelich, V. S. (1985). Ishodnyiy material dlya selektsii lna-dolguntsa. Kompleksnoe izuchenie tehnicheskih kultur v tselyah selektsii [Source material for selection of flax. Comprehensive study of industrial crops for selection purposes]. Nauchno-tehnicheskiy byulleten VIR, issue 154, pp. 41–44 [In Russian].
20. Kupyanskaya, N. A. (1984). Novyiy material kollektsii lna dlya selektsii [New material of flax collection for selection]. Selektsiya, semenovodstvo i agrotehnika vozdelyivaniya lna-dolguntsa – Breeding, seed production and agricultural technology of flax cultivation, issue 21, pp. 13–18 [In Russian].
21. Lohinov, M. I., Vyrovets, V. P., & Stepchenko, O. H. (1994). Kharakterystyka zrazkiv lonu-dovhuntsia za kompleksom oznak [Characteristics of long-stemmed flax samples by a set of traits]. In book: Kataloh ukrainskoi kolektsii lonu-dovhuntsia [Catalogue of the Ukrainian long-stemmed flax collection]. Hlukhiv, issue 1, pp. 3–15 [In Ukrainian].
22. Mironova, E. D. (1982). K metodike otsenki kachestva volokna na rannih etapah selektsii po anatomicheskim priznakam steblya lna-dolguntsa [Towards a method for assessing the quality of fibre at early stages of selection based on anatomical characteristics of the flax stem]. Sb. nauchnyih trudov Bel.NII zemledeliya, issue 1, pp. 175–179 [In Russian].
23. Mostovenko, O. O. (2003). Sorty lonu v Zhytomyrskii oblasti [Flax varieties in Zhytomyr region]. Materialy naukovo-tekhnichnoi konferentsii molodykh vchenykh «Problemy i perspektyvy rozvytku lonarstva ta konopliarstva v Ukraini» [Materials of the scientific and technical conference of young scientists «Problems and prospects for the development of flax and hemp growing in Ukraine»]. Hlukhiv, (pp. 23–26) [In Ukrainian].
24. Ponomareva, M. I. (1986). Otsenka i sozdanie ishodnogo materiala dlya selektsii lna-dolguntsa v usloviyah severnoy chasti nechernozemnoy zonyi RSFSR [Evaluation and creation of source material for selection of flax in the conditions of the northern part of the non-chernozem zone of the RSFSR]. Candidate’s thesis. Leningrad-Pushkin, (pp. 1–16) [In Russian].
25. Popova, G. M. (1951). Len-dolgunets [Flax]. In book: Chastnaya selektsiya polevyih kultur [Private selection of field crops]. Moskva-Leningrad, (pp. 329–341) [In Russian].
26. Rogash, A. R. (1963). Botanicheskaya harakteristika i biologicheskie osobennosti lna [Botanical characteristics and biological features of flax]. Selektsiya i semenovodstvo lna-dolguntsa – Breeding and seed production of flax. Moskva, (pp. 5–26) [In Russian].
27. Rogash, A. R. (1976). Botanicheskaya, hozyaystvennaya harakteristika i biologicheskie osobennosti lna-dolguntsa [Botanical, economic characteristics and biological features of flax]. Len i konoplya – Flax and hemp, pp. 21–39 [In Russian].
28. Rogash, A. R. (1975). Zadachi selektsii lna-dolguntsa v Nechernozemnoy zone RSFSR [Tasks of selection of flax in the Non-Black Earth Zone of the RSFSR]. Trudyi VNIIL, issue 13, pp. 3–8 [In Russian].
29. Rogash, A. R. (1979). O gruppirovke sortov lna-dolguntsa, dline vegetatsionnogo perioda [About grouping of flax varieties, length of vegetation period]. Len i konoplya – Flax and hemp, no. 9, pp. 28–29 [In Russian].
30. Rogash, A. R., & Kaminskaya, M. E. (1985). Dostizheniya i zadachi selektsii lna dolguntsa [Achievements and tasks of flax breeding]. Selektsiya i semenovodstvo – Selection and seed production. Moskva, (pp. 6–9) [In Russian].
31. Rogash, A. R., Kupyanskaya, N. A., Loshakova, N. I., Kryilova, T. V., & Kurchakova, L. N. (1986). Izuchenie obraztsov kollektsii lna – vazhneyshiy poisk istochnikov ishodnogo materiala dlya selektsii [Studying samples of the flax collection is the most important search for sources of initial material for selection]. Sb. Nauchnyie trudyi VNII lna. Torzhok, issue 23, pp. 12–17 [In Russian].
32. Rogash, A. R., Kupyanskaya, N. A., Ulyanova, N. T., & Kryilova, T. V. (1979). Ispolzovanie mirovoy kollektsii v selektsii lna-dolguntsa [Using the world collection in the selection of flax]. Trudyi po prikladnoy botanike, genetike i selektsii – Works on applied botany, genetics and selection, Vol. 64, issue 2, pp. 66–72 [In Russian].
33. Ryikova, R. P. (1967). Biologicheskie osnovyi polegaemosti lna [Biological bases of flax lodging]. Candidate’s thesis. Leningrad [In Russian].
34. Ryikova, R. P. (1980). Luchshie sorta po urozhayu semyan [The best varieties for seed yield]. Len i konoplya – Flax and hemp, no. 5, pp. 29–30 [In Russian].
35. Ryikova, R. P., & Yarosh, N. P. (1985). Harakteristika sortovogo raznoobraziya lna pryadilnogo po maslichnosti semyan i yodnomu chislu masla [Characteristics of varietal diversity of spinning flax by seed oil content and iodine number of oil]. Nauchno-tehnicheskiy byulleten VIR, issue 154, pp. 75–78 [In Russian].
36. Syachkova, N. S. (1985). Metodyi sozdaniya i rezultatyi otsenki ishodnogo materiala lna-dolguntsa [Methods of creation and results of evaluation of the initial material of flax fiber]. Selektsiya i semenovodstvo – Selection and seed production, no. 4, pp. 39–40 [In Russian].
37. Syachkova, N. S. (1985). Sozdanie ishodnogo materiala dlya selektsii [Creation of source material for selection]. Len i konoplya – Flax and hemp, no. 3, pp. 36–37 [In Russian].
38. Sharov, I. Ya. (1973). Selektsionnaya tsennost vyisokovoloknistyih sortov Tomskiy 9 i Tomskiy 10 [Selection value of high-fiber varieties Tomsky 9 and Tomsky 10]. Byulleten VIR, issue 36, pp. 84–88 [In Russian].