132 THE HANDBOOK FOR PRACTICAL FARMERS 



cured tobaccos are grown on heavy brownish or reddish-colored 

 soils containing rather high percentages of clay or silt. In Penn- 

 sylvania tobacco is grown in systematic rotation with wheat, 

 grass, and clover. In southern districts the practice of resting 

 the land for a time after growing one or more crops of tobacco 



has been extensively followed, 

 while in New England, par- 

 ticularly, the common prac- 

 tice has been to grow tobacco 

 continuously on the same 

 land. As a rule, rotation of 

 tobacco with other crops is 

 desirable. Under some cir- 

 cumstances, however, best re- 

 sults cannot be had by grow- 

 ing tobacco after legumes. 



Fertilizers. — Except where 

 the soil is alread}^ fertile lib- 

 eral fertilizing of the tobacco 

 crop is usually profitable. As 

 a rule, liming the soil is less 

 necessary for tobacco than 

 for many other crops. In the 

 cigar tobacco districts barn 

 manure is extensively used. 

 In the Connecticut Valley ap- 

 plications of a ton or more 

 per acre of commercial fer- 

 tilizers composed of such ma- 

 terials as cottonseed meal, 

 ground fish, quickly available 

 phosphates and sulphate or 

 carbonate of potash also are 

 commonly used. For cigar 

 tobaccos fertilizers containing muriate of potash should not 

 be used. In the flue-cured district commercial fertilizers are 

 necessary and an average application consists of eight hun- 

 dred pounds per acre of a mixture containing three per cent 

 each of nitrogen and potash and eight per cent available phos- 

 phoric acid. Fertilizers of about the same composition are used 

 for the dark fire-cured and air-cured tobaccos, but the aver- 

 age rate of application is somewhat less. Fertilizers are not 

 required in the Burley district. 



Fig. 45. — Tobacco plant, with paper bag 

 placed over the seed head to prevent 

 mixing or crossing with other varie- 

 ties. 



