10 



HOW TO RAISE TOBACCO. 



brought to the bottom. After eight to fourteen days, 

 •vrhen the soil has settled, it is thoroughly harrowed 

 in the direction of the furrows, to prevent the sod 

 being turned up again, which must remain below un- 

 disturbed. Shortly before planting the soil is harrow- 

 ed again, and if necessary it is rolled and harrowed 

 once more. This time it may be done crosswise. 

 This treatment of meadows and clover fields has these 

 advantages : the newly turned sod prevents the weeds 

 from coming «p, and the under-turned grass acts as a 

 manure, and, if the seed-bed should fail, (which may be 

 the case,) the work of breaking up the soil is not lost, 

 as other crops may be raised. 



" Tobacco makes the land poor.'" — This is ex- 

 perienced wherever tobacco is grown, and not only 

 individuals, but whole countries have ruined their soil 

 with this crop so thoroughly, that it remained barren 

 for a long time after. Whoever, therefore, cultivates 

 this hungry plant for more than a mere plaything, 

 must be careful that he does not exhaust his land. 

 He must not only possess a naturally rich soil, but 

 must have plenty of manure at his disposition, and 

 must follow a system of rotation. The writer of 

 this is of the opinion, that the tobacco of itself does 

 not require much manure, if planted for the first time 

 on otherwise good and rich soil, and that even animal 

 manure will iiijure the tobacco for making segars, and 

 for smoking ; but he docs believe, that for the crop fol- 

 lowing the tobacco, manuring can not be done too 

 early, and too heavily. The manures are very different, 

 and equally useful for the different kinds of tobacco. 

 We may classify them as follows : 



To be applied shortly before plantirfg, and in equal 

 quantities, for all kinds of tobacco : 1. Guano, 200 to 

 SOO pounds on the acre ; 2. Poultry-droppings, 400 to 

 600 pounds ; 3. Green manure in any quantity ; 

 4. Sheep-dung, 6 two-horse loads ; 5. Cattle manure, 

 10 two-horse loads. 



For chewing-tobacco and snuff: 1. Sheep-dung, 10 

 to 12 loads per acre ; 2. Cattle manure, 20 to 30 loads ; 

 8. Horse-dung, 15 to 25 loads; 4. Hog manure, 20 

 to 30 loads. The last two are useless for smoking to- 

 bacco, or for that to be used for segars. 



The first three manures (guano, poultry-droppings, 

 and green manure) must be followed after the tobacco- 

 crop, by a plentiful supply of stable-manure. The 

 tobacco-stalks themselves, rotted or burned to ashes, 

 sown over the field before the transplanting, or in the 

 planting-furrows, will act as a good manure, but are not 

 Buflficient. In highly- worked farms, that is, where the 

 soil is valuable, and can not remain idle, it will pay 

 every way, to sow rye for fodder on the tobacco-laud 

 in the fall ; this may be made into hay, or turned 

 under as manure at the beginning of July, just as may 

 seem most profitable. Deep plowing for the rye, and 

 'afterward for the tobacco, must not be forgotten. 



As a rotation for tobacco, I would recommend : first 

 year, corn, potatoes, cabbage, or any hoed crop ; 



second year, spring barley, with clover ; third year, 

 clover ; fourth year, the clover plowed under at the 

 beginning of June, and tobacco ; fifth year, wheat, 

 Nos. 1 and 4 to be manured. Or, if the richness of the 

 clover is intended for wheat, which also pays well for 

 this extra care, and if green rye is to be plowed 

 under for tobacco ; first and second year, as above ; 

 third, clover ; the third growth plowed under, and 

 wheat harrowed in ; fourth, wheat ; in the fall the 

 field is plowed, and rye sown ; fifth, green rye plowed 

 under, and tobacco. Nos. 1 and 5 to be manured. 



Or, if more wheat is desired, first, second, third, 

 fourth and fifth years as above, and wheat the sixth 

 year. Nos. 1 and 5, and if any way possible. No. 6 to 

 be manured. I consider the last rotation the best. It 

 will give, in six years, three straw-crops, which are much 

 needed for manure. The grain-crop of barley and wheat 

 is sure, and it don't happen as in the second, that a hoed 

 crop follows the tobacco, which is also a hoed crop. 

 Tobacco is planted on the same field again in seven 

 years, an interval long enough not to ruin the soil. 

 The benefit for tobacco in this rotation, consists in 

 the lasting qualities of the green clover and rye, 

 plowed under. 



3. Transplanting. — As soon as the seedlings are 

 of the size of cabbage-plants, that is, having four 

 leaves, and being four to six inches high, they are 

 ready for transplanting. The first thing is, to lay out 

 the land in planting-rows with the one-horse plow, as 

 for corn, and from north to south, if a steep slope 

 does not make another way necessary. These rows 

 are either furrows or ridges, according to whether 

 there is little or much rain expected, or as the soil is 

 porous or not. The furrows give the plants shadow, 

 and protect the soil from drought by the sun or winds ; 

 the ridges allow all the sun, and protect from damp- 

 ness. In this respect the planter must be governed by 

 experience. Ridges and furrows may be omitted, 

 especially in small plantations. A strong cord is 

 stretched over the whole width of the field, by stakes 

 at each side, and one in the middle ; along this cord 

 the plants are inserted at regular distances, which are 

 shown by some mark on the cord. When one row is 

 planted, the cord is removed to the next, and the 

 planting done in the same manner, and so on, until 

 the field is done. This method has the advantage, 

 that the soil may be made fine with the hoe shortly 

 before the inserting of the plant, if it has not been 

 done sufficiently with horse-labor. However the rows 

 may be made, they must be equally far apart, and so 

 with the plants in the rows. The distance of the rows 

 and of the plants depends upon the room which the 

 plant occupies when fully grown, and is therefore dif- 

 ferent with the several varieties of tobacco. Cuba ia 

 satisfied with the smallest space, while the other 

 varieties need more. The distance apart also depends 

 somewhat upon the richness of the soil, for very rich 

 soil will grow larger leaves than poor soil ; and then 



