TOBACCO CULTURE. 7 



iana, but its commercial importance is comparatively small. 

 Peculiarities of flavor and form of marketing, however, 

 make it necessary to consider this class under a special 

 heading. 



All classes or types of tobacco, belong to a single spec- 

 ies, Nicotiana tabacum, closely related to wild and cultivated 

 plants, among which are: the petunia, Irish potato, egg- 

 plant, and " jimson " weed. 



Tobacco plants of all varieties have much the same 

 habits of growth and characteristics. They grow from three 

 to nine feet in height, possess wide spread, lanceolate leaves 

 attached spirally and alternately to the stalk, at distances of 

 about two inches. The flowers form large clusters with 

 pink-tipped white corollas, which, when grown in masses, 

 present so attractive an appearance, that the plant is fre- 

 quently grown for purely ornamental purposes. 



SOILS FOR TOBACCO. 



While all crops are true to seed, grades are the result of 

 soil differences, peculiarities of climate, of planting and cul- 

 tivation methods, and of systematic and intelligent fertiliza- 

 tion, etc. As the market calls for these distinct grades in 

 tobaccos, this point becomes a very important one for the 

 planter to observe. It is doubtful if an expert could dis- 

 tinguish between wheat, or corn, or potatoes produced in 

 Connecticut, Virginia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina or 

 Wisconsin. Tobacco seed, however, taken from any one of 

 these localities to another, will, in a single season, produce 



