When the plants reach a height of about two feet 

 they must be "topped" to redistribute the growth 

 toward the bottom part of the plant. The topping 

 process means removal of the uppermost portion of 

 the plant where the flower would normally blossom. 

 If the plants were allowed to grow freely they would 

 reach a height of six feet. The quality of the leaves 

 would be evenly spread throughout the plant and they 

 would not be as rich and concentrated as they are 

 after being topped. 



As the plants mature, another laborious chore must 

 be performed. Suckers, or small shoots which grow 

 in the axes of the leaves and suck sap from the mother 

 plant, must be removed when they are three or four 

 inches long so that they will not inhibit the growth 

 and health of the plant. 





During the stemming process, women hand remove the main stems 



of the leaves and tie the leaves into bundles of about a pound each 



before the tobacco is packed into barrels for several months. 



