650 



TOBACCO 



TOBACCO 



The Broadleaf plants are usually topped below the 

 first large sucker. If it is found desirable to hasten 

 the ripening process, the plants are topped low, 

 although, if necessary to prevent the development 

 of too thick leaves, the plants should be topped high. 

 Usually the topping process is delayed until most of 

 the flower-buds appear, so that the topping can all 

 be done in one operation; but maijy growers prefer 

 to remove the buds as soon as they appear, going 

 over the field later and topping to the desired 

 height. As soon as the suckers appear, they should 

 be broken off, and, in order to do this effectively, 

 it is necessary to go over the field once a week 

 after the plants have been topped. 



The time to harvest the crop can be determined 

 only by experience with the strain which is grown. 

 As a rule, a ripe leaf has a rough feeling to the 

 touch, and there is a change in the color of the leaf 

 from a dark to a lighter green ; also, by folding 

 the leaf between the fingers a ripe leaf will break 

 easily. In the Broadleaf variety the plants are 

 usually cut, and, as all the leaves on a plant are not 

 ripe at one time, it is necessary to harvest the crop 

 when the majority of the leaves are in the proper 

 condition or about the time that the middle leaves 

 are ripe. Overripe leaves lose their elasticity and 

 strength, and are not suitable for cigar wrappers. 

 The plants are speared on four-foot laths, using a 

 detachable iron spearhead fitted in the end of the 

 lath, placing four to six plants on each lath. 



The Broadleaf tobacco is air-cured, the process 

 taking about six weeks. After harvesting, the plants 

 are immediately hung in the barn, and the tempera- 

 ture and humidity of these sheds must be closely 

 watched and controlled by means of the ventilators. 

 If the leaf cures too rapidly, the ventilators should 

 be opened on moist days and nights and closed on 

 dry days. If the curing process proceeds too slowly 

 or the tobacco is liable to injury from pole-burn 

 or other fungous diseases, the ventilators should 

 be opened on dry days and closed on moist days and 

 at night. In long-continued damp spells of weather, 

 when the tobacco cannot be dried out by opening 

 ike ventilators during the day, small fires of soft 



Fig. 878. Curing shed for tobacco in Connecticut Valley. 



pine or charcoal should be used to drive off the 

 excess of moisture and to raise the temperature in 

 the barns. 



The Broadleaf tobacco is usually fermented in 

 cases holding about 300 pounds, the hands of tobacco 

 being laid in these cases with the butts of the 

 hands on the outside and the tips in the center. 

 The tobacco is then pressed down under moderate 



pressure, the tops of the boxes screwed on, and the 

 cases kept in a room having an even temperature. 



Cuban tobacco. 



Cuban tobacco is grown under shade for wrapper 

 purposes, and without shade when used as a filler 

 for domestic cigars. The percentage of wrappers 

 in this outdoor crop is not large, but when the 

 leaves are primed the percentage is considerably 

 increased. The preparation and care of the seed- 



Fig. 879. Tobaoco-curmg shed, showing provision for ventila- 

 tion. Connecticut valley. 



beds and methods of cultivation are about the same 

 as in the case of the Sumatra variety. The rows 

 in the field are arranged about three feet four 

 inches apart and the plants set about fourteen 

 inches apart in the row. A greater distance results 

 in thick, heavy leaves. If the plants are set too 

 close, the leaves are too thin and lacking in body 

 for filler purposes. 



No definite rule can be laid down as to the 

 proper number of leaves to be left on the stalk 

 when the plants are topped. This number varies 

 with the height of the plant and the climatic con- 

 ditions during the season. Fourteen to sixteen 

 leaves, however, are considered desirable during 

 the ordinary season. The suckers begin to appear 

 very soon after topping and should be removed 

 every eight or ten days, or once a week when rains 

 are frequent. 



The method of harvesting the southern Cuban 

 tobacco is essentially the same as that practiced 

 with the Connecticut Havana Seed tobacco. The 

 number of plants to the lath, however, may be 

 increased to eight or ten, when the growth is 

 comparatively small. 



Some growers prefer to prime the Cuban to- 

 bacco. This process is more expensive, but a 

 thinner leaf is obtained, which makes it possible 

 to use a certain percentage of leaves for wrapper 

 purposes. There are no advantages in this system 

 over the present method of cutting the plants, so 

 far as the production of a filler leaf is concerned. 



Where the soil has been abundantly fertilized 

 and the season is favorable, a profitable second 

 crop of filler can be grown, which is commonly 

 called a " sucker crop." A week after cutting, all 

 the suckers should be broken from the old stump 

 with the exception of one, which is to be allowed 

 to remain and mature. It should be handled in 

 exactly the same way as the original crop. The 

 sucker crop ordinarily produces about one-half the 

 yield of the main crop. Insects are always very 

 much worse late in the season and become very 

 troublesome in the sucker crop. 



Worms are usually very troublesome on this 

 variety of tobacco and must be picked off and 



