488 FIELD CROPS 



639. Botanical Characters. The tobacco plant, Nico- 

 tiana tabacum, belongs to the natural order Solanaceae, in 

 which is included the potato, tomato, and egg plant, and such 

 medicinal and poisonous plants as henbane, nightshade, and 

 Jimson weed or datura. Tobacco is a broad-leaved annual, 

 growing to a height of from 5 to 8 feet. The leaves, which are 

 the portion utilized, vary greatly in shape, size, and texture 

 in different varieties and under different soil and climatic 

 conditions. Climate and soil have more influence than 

 variety, as widely differing varieties soon assume much the 

 same characteristics when grown in a given locality for 

 several years. The long white or pink tubular flowers are 

 borne in panicles at the top of the stem and on the ends of 

 the side branches. The numerous and very small seeds 

 mature in a few weeks after the blossoms appear. 



640. Types of Tobacco. Several distinct types of tobacco 

 are grown in the United States. The most important are 

 the cigar-leaf, White Burley, heavy or export, and bright 

 yellow. Cigars are made up of three distinct parts, the filler, 

 the binder, and the wrapper. The filler is the main portion, 

 giving substance and flavor; the binder is then rolled around 

 the filler to hold it together, and the cigar is finished by roll- 

 ing the wrapper, a thin, clear leaf, tightly around it. Filler 

 tobacco is grown principally in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and the 

 South, and wrapper grades in the Connecticut Valley, 

 Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Florida. White Burley is a 

 distinct type with light green leaves and cream-colored stems 

 and midribs, which is grown most largely in central Kentucky. 

 Most of this type is used in the manufacture of chewing 

 tobacco. In western Kentucky, western Tennessee, and the 

 adjoining sections of Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri, a type 

 known as heavy, dark, or export tobacco is grown. This is 

 a dark-colored, thick-leaved type which is mostly exported 



