TOBACCO INVESTIGATIONS. 



weight. There was a tendency on the part of many growers, resulting 

 perhaps from their experiences in 1915, to harvest the crop before it was 

 mature; whereas, as a matter of fact, the leaf matured in general rather 

 late in 1916. This factor undoubtedly influenced somewhat the character 

 and weight of the leaf. 



It is a self-evident fact that rainfall, temperature, sunlight, humidity, 

 etc., are very important factors in the normal growth of any crop, and 

 perhaps exert a greater influence than usual in the case of tobacco, which 

 is particularly sensitive to slight environmental changes. The season of 



JUNE 



JULY 



AUGUST 



YIELD PER 

 ACRE - LBS. 



1915 



rnT 



ACTUAL RAINFALL 



IWV^^N^ AVERAGE NORMAL RAINFALL 



Fig. 2. —Comparison of actual rainfall and yield with normal rainfall for 1915, 1910, and 

 1905, a so-called " dry " year. 



1915 was one of very heavy rainfall, as was that of 1916; therefore, as a 

 means of comparison of conditions, the rainfall of 1916 has been plotted 

 with that of 1915, and with a so-called "dry" year in which the crop 

 was of good weight and quality. Fig. 2 shows the rainfall in inches week 

 by week from June 1 to September 1, the variation from the normal, and 

 the yield for each of the years. The correlation of excessive moisture 

 and low yield is certainly very marked; also the converse: subnormal 

 rainfall, well distributed, with a high yield. 



