8 



much of the tobacco grown in all parts of the State has had no ready 

 sale, and many of the growers have become discouraged. This, how- 

 ever, is due to the fact that the growers are inexperienced as to the 

 culture, harvesting, and general care necessary for the production of fine 

 tobacco. 



From the foregoing statements it can be seen that the cigar trade, 

 as applied to the higher- grade goods, demands the quality of the Cuban 

 tobacco aud the style of the Sumatra leaf. With these facts before us, 

 it is unquestionably the duty of each tobacco- growing section to try to 

 produce a tobacco that will meet these requirements. AVhile we may 

 not hope to entirely displace the Cuban fillers, we certainly can hope 

 to produce a filler that will blend well with these goods, and thus 

 greatly reduce the quantity of Cuban tobacco imported into this 

 country. 



CULTIVATION^ OF CUBAN TOBACCO IN FLORIDA. 



The land for the seed bed should preferably be fresh, rich hammock, 

 having a light gray soil, moist but not wet. Dry, thirsty land should 

 be avoided. One hundred square yards of seed bed are necessary for 

 each acre to be grown, and two tablesi^oonfuls of seed are needed to 

 sow this area. If fresh hammock is available, the timber should be 

 cut in November or December aud the wood stacked, so that it will dry 

 and be ready for burning when the seed bed is made. The time for 

 sowing the seed is from Januarj^ 15 to March 1. About one week 

 before sowing the seed the bed should be thoroughly cleaned, and all 

 straw aud leaves carefully raked off', after which the ground should be 

 '^burned.'' This burning is done for two reasons; first, to destroy all 

 grass or weed seeds or roots that might otherwise come up and choke 

 the tobacco plants; second, to obtain the fertilizing properties of the 

 hard wood. It is done in the following manner: 



After raking the surface of the land well, skids are laid 4 feet 

 apart, running the full length of the plot to be sown. A pile of wood 

 is then laid across the skids, running the full width of the bed. The 

 fire is started, and as fast as the ground is thoroughly burned aud 

 covered with ashes the fire and wood are drawn along the skids, wood 

 being continuously added. The fire is moved along the skids until the 

 entire bed has been burned, after which the ground is again raked to 

 remove the coals, letting the ashes remain. The soil is then spaded to 

 a depth of about 4 inches, carefully taking out all roots and tufts. If 

 the soil needs fertilizing after the spading is completed (the seed bed 

 should be very rich in order to give thrifty, healthy plants), such quan- 

 tity of fertilizer as may seem necessary is sown broadcast over the sur- 

 face. Any complete guano maybe used. The bed is again raked with 

 an iron-toothed rake to mix the fertilizer well with the soil and to have 

 tbe surface smooth and loose. 



The bed is divided into "lands" about 4 feet wide, leaving narrow 

 walks between. Each land is measured, to see how many square 



