TOBACCO. 



TOBACCO. 



has been a very surprising increase of the use 

 of tobacco in this country, and that the annual 

 consumption now amounts to upwards of 

 100,000,000 Ibs.: giving about 7 Ibs. to every 

 man, woman, and child. The sum annually 

 paid ly the consumers of this quantity of to- 

 bacco in its manufactured state, has been com- 

 puted by a writer in The Portsmouth Journal, at 

 $20,000,000. (National Gazette, Philadelphia, 

 Oct. 6, 1836. Republished in Farmer's Register, 

 vol. vi. 1838.) 



Culture of Tobacco. The following concise 

 directions for the cultivation and management 

 of tobacco are chiefly taken from a communi- 

 cation drawn up by Mr. J. F. Edmunds, of 

 Mecklenburg, Virginia, and originally pub- 

 lished in the Farmer's Jie^ister. 



Raiting the Plants. The land for the plant- 

 bed is usually selected in a warm exposure on 

 the south or southeastern side of a hill in a 

 wood, new ground being always preferred. 

 From this the roots should be grubbed, the rub- 

 bish cleared away and the old leaves raked off. 

 Brush of pine or other wood is then to be 

 piled on until from 2 to 3 feet thick all over the 

 bed, and this is to be set on fire. As the beds 

 should be prepared for seeding immediately 

 after the frost is out of the ground, the brush 

 should be collected arid put in place some time 

 during the winter. Instead of burning over 

 the whole bed at once, a part may be fired for 

 an hour or so at a time, proceeding thus over 

 the entire bed. The place is then to be broken 

 up with hoes, and sometimes with coulters 

 drawn by horses or oxen, and the work re- 

 peated until the earth is made perfectly fine, 

 being careful to avoid ttirninir under the sur- 

 face. All the roots should then be extracted, 

 and the land laid off in beds (slightly elevated 

 if dry, and more if moist or wet) 4 feet wide. 

 And to 16 square yards, a common pipe-bowl 

 of seed is sown. The bed is then trodden or 

 pressed with hoes, and well covered with brush 

 to protect the plants from frosts. When the 

 plants have come fully out, they should be 

 slightly manured with strong manure made 

 fine ; this should be repeated frequently/, and 

 in larger quantity, as the plants increase in 

 size and are able to bear it. 



When the plants have attained a good size, 

 and there is no longer danger of frost, the 

 covering of brush is removed, and the bed 

 weeded with the hand, those employed in this 

 duty taking great care to avoid bruising the 

 tender plants. The beds require frequent pick- 

 ing to keep down the weeds. 



Preparation and Planting. The plants will 

 be generally ready for removal about the last 

 of May or first of June. They are to be drawn 

 out after a rain and transplanted in good 

 ground previously well prepared for their 

 reception. 



Soil and Season. In Virginia and the other 

 states, the best tobacco is grown in rich, light, 

 alluvial, loamy land, or such as has been re- 

 cently cleared and brought into cultivation. 

 Tobacco requires a mild and warm season, and 

 can never be worth growing in situations ele- 

 vated much above the level of the sea, in 

 northern exposures, or in wet and springy land. 



Field Culture. The land for tobacco should 

 132 



be of the best quality, either newly cleared and 

 virgin soil, or old ground highly manured and 

 welV pulverized, or good clover fallow, ploughed 

 in the fall, manured and cross-ploughed in the 

 spring, just before planting, well harrowed, 

 and then laid off with a plough in rows 3, 3^, 

 or 4 feet apart each way. Every square thus 

 I made is to be scraped with the hoe so as to 

 ! form a hill in which one plant is to be set. In 

 case the plants die from drought, or are de- 

 stroyed by worms, a very common occurrence, 

 others must be set in their places. 



Cultivation. The culture is very much like 

 | that usually adopted for Indian corn,the plough, 

 | cultivator and hand-hoe being freely used to 

 keep down weeds and loosen the earth. 



It is important to the early growth of the 

 plant to plough and work deep once or twice, 

 so that when it is ripening, the ground will 

 be broken deep and fine. (The coulter is 

 preferred for this operation.) This should be 

 effected without much interference with the 

 roots, as that would check the growth, and pre- 

 vent the plant from attaining its proper size. 

 And hence the advantage of greater distance 

 between the rows than the common distance 

 of 3 feet because the wide rows can be 

 ploughed, and worked with less damage to the 

 roots. In this, as in all other crops, if we wish 

 a good return, " we must speed the plough" and 

 hoe, before the roots run out. On our high 

 lands we -should endeavour, by deep and 

 horizontal ploughing, to counteract the bad 

 of drought. On our flats, we should aim 

 to prevent the collection of water by drains dis- 

 charged at the lowest point. 



The bed is best for high land, because it 

 retains more moisture where it is generally 

 needed. The hill, retaining less moisture, is 

 best for flat land, where there is commonly a 

 superabundance. 



Priming, '/'"/^m/sr, Surkcring, and Worming. 

 As the tobacco plant grows and developes, a 

 blossom-bud puts out from the top, which is 

 termed buttoning. This top must be pulled off 

 along with such of the upper leaves as are too 

 small to be of any value. The plants are thus 

 left usually about 2 or 3 feet high. The 

 plants also shoot out suckers from every leaf, 

 which must be broken off, care being taken not 

 to break the leaf from the main stem. This 

 causes the leaves to spread. 



The most regular topping is performed by 

 measure. The topper carries in his hand a 

 measure 6 inches long, by occasionally apply- 

 ing which, he can regulate the priming with 

 great accuracy; and as the remaining leaves 

 are numbered, this governs the operation, and 

 gains the object of even topping. The topper 

 should always carry this measure in his 

 hand, as it serves to prevent excuses for 

 negligence and uneven topping. Prime six 

 inches, and top to eight leaves. We have 

 found, by experience, that this is the best ave- 

 I rage height. We sometimes, but seldom, vary 

 ! from this general rule. If the land is poorei 

 j than common, or if, from the backwardness of 

 , the plant, and the advanced state of the season, 

 ! we apprehend frost, we do not prime as high ; 

 (say 4 inches.) If we have an uncommonly 

 rich spot, and there is danger that the top 

 4T2 1049 



