600 HORTICULTURE, FORESTRY, FLORICULTURE 



complete separation, it is necessary to use some form of a wind-olast 

 machine which will blow out the light seed without throwing out 

 the heavy seed at the same time. The heavy seed produces the most 

 vigorous and uniform young plants in the seed beds, and these 

 plants are most desirable for use in the case of all varieties of tobacco. 



The Havana seed variety of tobacco is usually sown in the seed 

 bed from the middle of March to the middle of April, and the plants 

 are ready for setting out from these beds from May 10 to June 10. 



One of the most important points in the raising of a successful 

 crop of tobacco is the care of the seed bed in the production of the 

 seedlings. It is necessary to water the seed bed frequently, usually 

 once or twice every day during the early stages of growth. If the 

 beds are artificially heated, warm water should be used for this 

 watering process, as cold water cools the beds and checks the growth 

 of the young plants. The surface of the seed bed should not be al- 

 lowed to become dry, as a few hours of dry surface will kill all of 

 the young plants. The water should be supplied in the form of a 

 light spray, in order not to disturb the seed or the young plants in 

 the bed or to pack the soil so that in drying it will cake and injure 

 the plants. 



The temperature of the hotbeds should be carefully regulated, 

 and in no case allowed to rise above 100 F. during the day or fall 

 below 70 F. during the night. If it is possible to maintain an even 

 temperature the plants will make the most rapid growth, but it is 

 a question whether they will be as hardy as when subjected to the 

 fluctuating temperatures corresponding to the natural changes be- 

 tween night and day. The beds can be cooled when necessary by 

 raising the sash if the temperature rises, or the temperature can be 

 raised at night by using lanterns set 5 or 6 feet apart in the seed bed 

 and by covering the sash with heavy cloth, such as ordinary blan- 

 kets, in order to retain the heat. After the young plants reach the 

 proper size for setting out, usually from 5 to 6 weeks after sowing in 

 the seed bed, the sash can be taken off most of the time during the 

 day and the beds watered only when the plants begin to wilt. If 

 the plants come up too thick in any portion of the seed bed, they 

 should be thinned out by using an ordinary garden rake and pull- 

 ing it through the thickly set plants. Sufficient plants will be re- 

 moved in this way, and tnose which remain will not be injured by 

 the thinning process, but will be benefited by the stirring of the sur- 

 face soil. It is also necessary to keep out all weeds, carefully pull- 

 ing them as soon as they appear among the tobacco plants. Before 

 pulling the weeds, the beds should be thoroughly watered. If flea- 

 beetles or other biting insects attack the young plants in the seed 

 bed, the plants should be sprayed with a Paris green mixture at the 

 rate of 1 pound of Paris green and an equal quantity of quicklime 

 to 100 gallons of water. If fungous diseases begin to grow in any 

 portion of the seed bed, it should be thoroughly aired by raising the 

 sash during the day, and if this method does not check the growth 

 of the fungus the beds should be sprayed with a solution of forma- 

 lin 1 part of formalin to 2,000 parts of water. An application of 



