are harvested by the stalk-cutting method. The 

 entire plant is cut close to the ground with a 

 special type of hatchet or knife. Usually all plants 

 in the field are harvested at the same time, but 

 some less mature areas may be left and cut later. 

 After being cut, five or six stalks are speared on- 

 to sticks 4 1 /2 feet (1.4 meters) long, and left in the 

 field a day or so and allowed to wilt, so they will 

 lose water and not break in handling. 



The density of the tobacco on the sticks (or the 

 string, in the case of Puerto Rican) is an impor- 

 tant fact in the curing process, as satisfactory 

 curing is made difficult by crowding. Space must 

 be left between the plants or leaves for proper 

 circulation of air. 



Along with chemical changes that take place 

 during the curing process, there is also a loss in 

 weight from evaporation of a large quantity of the 

 water contained in the leaf when it is harvested. 

 Fresh leaf, as it goes into the curing barn, usually 

 contains about 85 percent water, which is 

 reduced to about 15 percent in curing. Therefore, 

 about 6,500 pounds (2,925 kilograms) of green 

 leaf will be required to yield 1,000 pounds (453 

 kilograms) of cured leaf, and over 4,000 pounds 

 (1 ,800 kilograms) of water will be lost in the curing 

 process. 



Curing 



There are three basic methods of curing 

 tobacco: 



(1) air-curing— in which the tobacco is pri- 

 marily cured under natural weather conditions, 

 but heat may be used to some extent; 



(2) flue-curing— in which the tobacco is cured 

 by heated air at gradually increasing tempera- 

 tures, but must not be subjected to smoke or 

 odors; 



(3) fire-curing— in which the tobacco is mostly 

 cured with wood fires and the smoke comes in 

 contact with the leaf. 



Air-curing (burley, Maryland, dark air-cured, 

 and cigar types) 



Type of barn— Barns used for air-curing 

 tobacco are 30 to 40 feet (9.1 to 1 2.2 meters) wide 

 and up to 300 feet (91 .5 meters) in length. Boards 

 on the outside of the barn are usually vertical with 

 about every third board hung on hinges to 

 function as a ventilator. 



The barn has driveways and doors large 

 enough to allow a wagon or truck to pass through 

 easily. The interior consists of a framework of 

 poles for supporting the laths on which the 

 tobacco has been placed. The spaces between the 



Workers hang cigar wrapper leaves in a 

 curing barn. 



Air-curing barns are constructed so Freshly harves 

 that sticks of tobacco can be hung at is loaded m\ 



different levels. 



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