9 



spared in properly fitting the tobacco land, filling in furrows, 

 if there are any, and using the most efficient tools to pulverize 

 and level the land. 



Setting. 

 Transplanting or setting the plants generally begins about 

 the 20th of May, and is the order of the day until the crop is 

 well started, usually a month later. Setting is almost wholly 

 done with a machine called the tobacco setter, and this is by 

 far the most valuable machine used in the business. The old 

 back-breaking method of hand setting has almost entirely dis- 

 appeared from the valley. The setter needs plants that are a 

 little larger than for hand setting, but does the ridging, setting, 

 watering and marking for the next row at one operation. This 

 machine requires three men and a pair of horses, and can easily 

 set two acres in an afternoon, while in an all-day session three 

 to five acres can be set, depending on conditions. Tobacco is 

 usually set with the rows 3 feet apart, and the plants from 15 

 to 20 inches apart in the row. Plants that do not live should be 

 reset at once by hand if an even stand is to be had. 



Cultivation. 

 As soon as the plants have started cultivation begins. A 

 favorite tool for the first time is a 12-tooth cultivator, which 

 by careful handling will allow the operator to work close to the 

 row, the machine being run twice in each row. If deep cul- 

 tivation is to be practiced, the early part of the season is the 

 time to do it, before the root system has developed. Hand 

 hoeing is next in order, and from now on as long as a horse 

 can travel between the rows the land should be stirred once a 

 week or even oftener. Some growers hoe by hand three or 

 four times in a season, while others use the horse hoe. Many 

 different methods are used, but the principle is the same, 

 namely, to keep the soil well stirred so as to retain moisture 

 and to keep the plant growing all the time. 



Topping and Suckering. 

 When the plant has grown large enough for the seed bud to 

 appear, the top is broken off, or the plant is "topped," the 

 idea being to throw the strength that would naturally co into 



