PESTS OF TOBACCO. 259 



When the land is badly infested with broom rape, 

 the director of the Kentucky station thinks that a rota- 

 tion with crops which are not attacked by it is the best 

 means of avoiding injury. The seeds of the broom rape 

 are very small, far smaller, indeed, than tobacco seeds, 

 and they seem to possess great vitality, remaining several 

 years in the ground without losing their power of 

 germination, which appears only to take place when 

 brought near the host plant. This parasite cannot be 

 removed by hand, for its roots are so intimately inter- 

 twined with the roots of the host plant, that one may 

 not be pulled up without pulling up the other. It is 

 said that an application of gas lime to the soil will some- 

 times prove successful in destroying the seed of the 

 noxious plants. The lime looses this property after 

 being exposed to the air for some time. The application 

 should be made to the land in the fall of the year, at the 

 rate of two tons per acre, and plowed, or harrowed, into 

 the ground. A stimulating manure applied to the land 

 will aid the hemp or tobacco plant in resisting the 

 onslaught of the broom rape. The station does not 

 recommend stable manure, however, for this purpose. 

 Whatever renders the soil friable, stimulates the broom 

 rape to greater activity, when its host plant is present. 

 It does not push its way readily through a closely com- 

 pacted soil. The danger to tobacco on infested land is 

 greatly increased when the soil is loose and porous. 

 Rolling the land with a heavy roller is recommended 

 when the land is infested with the broom rape. This 

 should be done immediately before setting out the 

 tobacco plants. 



Hail is a much dreaded enemy from which there is 

 no escape, as it is not practicable to cover a field so that 

 a hail storm would not cut the leaves. The best plan is 

 for growers to mutually insure against damage by hail 

 or wind, through a cooperative insurance company 



