270 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



tobacco is raised on one particular brand. Years of experience 

 have taught the grower to be particular about the goods he 

 Vises. The materials must be quickly available as the crop must 

 ripen in from sixty to eighty days from setting. The fertilizer 

 also has considerable effect on those desirable qualities known 

 as "body," "finish" and "burn." Cottonseed meal is the 

 favorite source of nitrogen. Other ammoniates used are linseed 

 meal, dry ground fish and castor pomace. Bone of some sort 

 is well liked as the source of phosphoric acid, and sulphate 

 is the favorite potash, muriate being tabooed on account of 

 the chlorine contents which affect the "burn." 



With a coat of manure 1 ton of fertilizer per acre will raise 

 a good crop, but where manure is not available 1| to 2 tons of 

 the high-grade goods are often used, the idea being to have 

 enough plant food to insure a good growth. After the land is 

 plowed, harrowed and rolled the fertilizer is applied broadcast. 

 For this operation the fertilizer machine is invaluable, es- 

 pecially in windy weather. No time or expense should be 

 spared in properly fitting the tobacco land, filling in furrows, 

 if there are any, and using the most efficient tools to pulverize 

 and level the land. 



Setting. 



Transplanting or setting the plants generally begins about 

 the 20th of May, and is the order of the day until the crop is 

 well started, usually a month later. Setting is almost wholly 

 done with a machine called the tobacco setter, and this is by 

 far the most valuable machine used in the business. The old 

 back-breaking method of hand setting has almost entirely dis- 

 appeared from the valley. The setter needs plants that are a 

 little larger than for hand setting, but does the ridging, setting, 

 watering and marking for the next row at one operation. This 

 machine requires three men and a pair of horses, and can easily 

 set two acres in an afternoon, while in an all-day session three 

 to five acres can be set, depending on conditions. Tobacco is 

 usually set with the rows 3 feet apart, and the plants from 15 

 to 20 inches apart in the row. Plants that do not live should be 

 reset at once by hand if an even stand is to be had. 



