TOBACCO 153 



Nicotiana tabacum is a fine handsome plant with great, 

 broad leaves, covered with tiny little hairs. It grows about 

 six feet high, and has beautiful pink flowers. This is the kind 

 which is most extensively grown. It is often called the 

 American tobacco plant, for not only is it a native of America, 

 but the States, especially Kentucky, Virginia, and Carolina, 

 produce more than half the tobacco crops of the world. 1 

 Though grown chiefly in tropical or sub-tropical climates 

 it does well in temperate ones, provided it can be protected 

 from frost, to which it is peculiarly sensitive. 



With regard to soils, it seems to prefer a light sandy loam 

 or alluvial soil, though heavy clay produces good crops. The 

 quality of the leaf varies greatly according to the soil and 

 climate in which it is grown ; heavy soils produce strong 

 tobaccos and light ones mild. 



The seeds of the plant are very small, about 100,000 to 

 the ounce, and when sown they are mixed with sand or wood- 

 ashes, so that they may be evenly distributed. When the 

 flower begins to shoot, the top is nipped off, in order that 

 all the strength may go to the leaves. These are gathered as 

 they are ripe, and either dried in the sun or in drying sheds, 

 then piled in heaps, and left for a week or two to ferment, 

 after which they are sorted out according to size, pressed 

 down into barrels, and packed for export. 



The tobacco grown in Cuba has a pleasant aromatic smell, 

 which has caused the Havana cigars manufactured from it 

 to have a world- wide reputation. A good deal of ' Cuban ' 

 tobacco is, however, imported from the Philippines and made 

 into cigars in Havana. 



Besides Nicotiana tabacum there are many other species 

 of the tobacco plant, two of the best known being Nicotiana 

 rustica and Nicotiana persica. The first grows to about 

 four feet in height, and bears greenish-coloured flowers. 



1 Next in order of importance comes India (where large quantities are 

 grown), and then Russia, Austria- Hungary, the Dutch East Indies, and 

 Japan. It is also largely grown in Italy, France, and Germany. 



