14 



Physical analyses of some tobacco soils. 



Constitueirt«. 



Organic matter and wate 



Gravel 



Coarse sand 



Medium sand 



Fine sand 



Very fine sand 



Silt". 



Clay 



Pohakea. 



Per cent. 



35. 935 



16.511 



11.337 



fi.716 



14.002 



8.339 



5.848 



.940 



Kailua, 

 Kona. 



Per cent. 



30.82 



11.85 



13. 25 



3.95 



8.42 



28.25 



1.75 



.85 



Rimboen, 

 Sumatra. 



Per cent. 



23.41 



.81 



1.44 



3. 62 



13.94 



19. 52 



23. 51 



2.72 



A chemical examination of the Pohakea soils showed that although 

 the "iron and alumina'' content is high the percentage of cla}' is very 

 low. The "fine gravel" and "coarse sand" are reall}- reducible to 

 "fine sand" and "verj^ fine sand" if the soil is shaken in water for 

 longer than the customary period previous to anal3^sis. There is 

 almost no true clay in this soil, and practically no true gravel or coarse 

 sand. 



' The lime is present as a silicate and is too low in quantity to neu- 

 tralize the acidit3^ The potash content is very low. Nevertheless, a 

 dressing of sulphate of potash applied to the experimental plats at the 

 rate of 500 pounds per acre produced cigar leaf of exceptionalh' good 

 burning qualities. The nitrogen, although high, is largely unavail- 

 able, so that it will pay to use moderate amounts of nitrate on the crop. 

 The phosphoric acid is presumably largel}^ unavailable. 



On cultivation the coarser particles of Hawaiian soils rapidl}' disin- 

 tegrate. The shotty particles, technicall}^ classed as " fine gravel" and 

 "coarse sand," when worked wdth rubber pestles or rubbed between 

 the fingers are easily crushed to a fine powder. The ultimate soil 

 grains are agglutinated in masses because of the exceptionalh' large 

 percentage of organic matter in the soil. 



The tobacco soils of Hamakua and Kona are very similar in all their 

 characteristics, and probabl}- the Kona district is better adapted to 

 tobacco cultivation than Hamakua because of the protection from 

 strong trade winds. 



CLIMATE. 



The influence or climate on the growing of tobacco is alwa3^s held to 

 be a potent factor. Cigar tobaccos of good quality are produced 

 through a wide range in latitude. Proximity' to the ocean has always 

 been considered a deterrent influence. 



Tobacco requires from TO to 100 inches annual rainfall, from one- 

 half to one-third of this during the growing season. Moderate 

 temperatures, frequent showers or irrigation, to promote even, 

 uninterrupted growth, neither too rapid nor too slow, constitute an 

 ' important element in determining the suitability of anj^ district where 

 soil conditions are correct. The slight variation of daily and seasonal 



