DIVISION OF TOBACCO ■ lOOr 



SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 



The plantation of Canelle was intended for the prodvictiou of seed; those of Erba- 

 santa and ilakhorka with a view to the study of their nicotine content and, lastly^ 

 those of Big Ohio, Conistock and Suiuatra in order to make new hybrids of Big Ohio 

 X Sumatra and Comstock x Sumatra for comparison with the hybrids of those varie- 

 ties already made and on which four years' selection had been made. Germination 

 was uniform and good on all the beds between No. 1 and No. 12. The " filler '' varie- 

 ties, Cuban, St. Felix, and Las Almas, which are a little later, required eleven days- 

 for germination. Beds 18, 19, and 20 gei-minated a day later than the above, except 

 the Big Ohio and the Comstock, where germination took place eight days after sowing; 

 in brief, by April 29, germination was general in all the beds. 



The next operation was weeding which, owing to the good condition of the beds, 

 was not very long or labourious. Immediately after, by means of a screen, a light 

 covering of very fine earth was spread over all the beds in order to fix in place any 

 young plants which the weeding operation might have disturbed. The plants were 

 watered, with water slightly warmed, twice a day, about 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. A large 

 kettle was placed among the beds, over a brick fireplace, which rendered the watering 

 easy. 



In general, the plants made rapid growth in the beds. The Cuban and the Brazils 

 were, however, very slow, and the Rusticas, the young plants of which were very pale 

 in colour, developed very quickly. In the latter case, foreign seed had been used, and 

 it is possible that its germinative power had been impaired and that more seed should 

 have been sown. 



The beds were aired every day, the length of time depending on the outside tem- 

 perature. It should be remembered that plants breathe and that it is dangerous to 

 allow them to develop in a confined atmosphere. 



A very thin covering of white cotton placed between the frame and the seedling 

 protected the latter from the sun, and each evening the frames v/ere covered with a 

 thicker cloth of a dark colour to reduce as much as possible the radiation of heat dur- 

 ing the night. 



Having adopted this special system of beds, the variations in inside and outside 

 temperature were followed very closely. Two maximum and minimum thermometers 

 were placed in the beds, and one on the outside. The highest and lowest temperatures 

 both inside and out were taken every day, and the variations are indicated in the 

 diagram. 



As will be seen, the maximum temperature in the beds never exceeded 86°F. The 

 minimum of 33° was observed during the night of May 17, on which date a minimum 

 of 30° was noted outside. In a neighbour's beds, which were made very warm, the 

 thermometer also recorded 33°. One shoiild not, therefore, lay too much stress on the 

 importance of manure as a heat preservative. For this purpose, tight frames, well- 

 built sashes and sunshine are the principal factors to rely on. 



Much has been said and written on the subject of beds, but the question is still 

 unsettled. In our opinion, the purpose of the bed has been a little misunderstood. 

 They are, in short, a means, not of forcing the development of the plant but of allow- 

 ing it to gro\fr under as normal conditions as possible; the beds are made not to stimu- 

 late artificially the plant's growth but to permit it to develop in the way it has been 

 accustomed to, because in our country we cannot grow the tobacco seedling in the open 

 air without subjecting it to severe set-backs. The beds, in a word, are a means of 

 sheltering the plant from the unfavourable weather conditions generally prevailing 

 in April. In our opinion, the ideal aimed at should be to remove the plant as little 

 as possible from the natural conditions of growth, while taking all necessary precau- 

 tions to protect it from extremes of temperature. Now, the best way would be to 

 place the seed in the open ground and allow it to develop naturally, which is the 

 reason why the simple form of bed described above was tried. In short, the beds 



* Farnh.^m. 



16— 65i 



