5 GEORGE V. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 A. 1915 



CENTRAL EXPERIMENTAL FARM, OTTAWA. 



HEPOUT OF THE DOMINION TOBACCO HUSBANDMAN, F. CHARLAN. 



The area available for experimental work with tobacco at the Central Farm does 

 not permit of the growing of more than one acre of tobacco each year. 



It is impossible to produce, on such a small piece of land, a fair-sized crop of any 

 one variety, and therefore the land has been devoted, of late years, to the study of 

 new varieties before sending them out for trial on the Tobacco Station?, and to the 

 production of seed. 



It may be said here that, owing to the special attention we have been able to give 

 this latter portion of our work at Ottawa, the best seed has always been obtained 

 here, and it is from this source that the seed of the best quality, which is distributed 

 throughout the province of Quebec, is obtained. 



The varieties grown at Ottawa in 1913 were as follows : — Brazil las Almas, Brazil 

 St. Felix, Connecticut Broad Leaf, Connecticut Seed Leaf, Big Ohio, Comstoek 

 Spanish, General Grant, Big Havana, Erbasanta Long Leaf, Erbasanta Short Leaf, 

 Chwizent, Canelle, Erzegovine Giant, Erzegovine Stolak, Virginia X Eivegovine. 

 Giant, and Virginia X Erzegovine Giant X Virginia. 



Of these, the Brazils, Connecticuts, Big Ohio, Comstoek, General Grant, Big 

 Havana, and Canelle were grown especially for seed production. The Erbasantas 

 were grown in order to get their weight of yield and percentage of nicotine; the 

 Chwizent to judge of the possibility of employing it in crossing with the Virginias, 

 for the production of yellow tobaccos; the Erzegovines and their hybrids to see 

 whether these were suitable for Canada, and whether they, too, could be used in the 

 production of yellow tobaccos (of the flue-cured type). 



* Seed-Beds. 



Thes« comprised two semi-hotbeds, built up on a foundation of tobacco stems 

 and one hotbed on a foundation of fermenting horse manure. The mould was disin- 

 fected with formalin after being poat into place in the beds, commencing the 12th of 

 April. After the formalin evaporated, the cold beds received an application of 

 chemical fertilizer 3-8-3, at the rate of 1 ounce per square foot of bed. No fertilizer 

 was applied to the hotbed. 



Seed was sown on April 24 in the hotbed, the seeds being put in dry ; swollen 

 seed was used in the cold beds, sowing taking place on April 26. 



No trace of disease was noted. 



Growth in the hotbed was slightly more rapid at first but it was quickly overtaken 

 by the cold beds as soon as the roots in the latter had developed sufficiently to come 

 into contact with that part of the soil containing the chemical fei'tilizer (about one- 

 half inch below the surface). 



The temperature kept up during the coldest period, from the 2nd to the 18th of 

 Maj', showed that by observing the simplest precautions, equally necessary for the 

 hotbed as for the semi-hotbed, it is easy to mnintnin in the latter a temperaturci quite 

 as high as in the hotbed. The difference between the minimum temperature in the 

 two was rarely more than V C. in favour of the hotbed, and frequently no appreciable 

 difference could be observed. 



The temperature were taken every day. at 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. 



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