54 TOBACCO. 



much tobacco, and of a better quality, than he who may- 

 have planted from 25,000 to 30,000 plants per labourer. 



" When the plantations are out of proportion to the 

 strength of the labour which can be counted on, all the 

 work becomes slowly and badly done, and these faults 

 most sensibly prejudice both the yield and the quality of 

 the crop, and consequently the interest of the planter. 

 Immediately after supplying the fields, the tobacco 

 plants should be carefully inspected, almost daily, in 

 order to exterminate the caterpillars of every kind that 

 may be found, and this operation should alimys be made 

 during the morning, because in the heat of the day the 

 worms are accustomed to hide themselves from the sun, 

 and the wind agitates the leaves too strongly to permit 

 them to be handled without risk of being broken or torn, 

 especially when they are somewhat large." 



After-cultivation. — After the plants have once taken root, 

 they grow rapidly They are hoed when about 6-9 in. 

 high, and the soil is drawn from the furrows to raise the 

 hills, maintaining a depression round the stems. If the 

 soil is not very rich, a special manure should be applied 

 at this stage of growth. The best manure generally will 

 be nitre in a liquid state, which can be applied in the 

 depression around the plants with a watering-pot. By 

 applying it in solution and close to the plant, less is 

 required than when spread over the whole field. Some 

 weeks afterwards, another hoeing and heaping of earth 

 round the plants will be necessary. It is most difficult to 

 say the number of hoeings which may be required by a 

 tobacco crop. The general rule to be followed is to keep 

 the soil loose, friable, and free from weeds. The more 



