THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 291 



may either be hauled to the house and 

 hung, or hung in the field, shingled down, 

 and hauled upon the stick. We usually 

 hang about nine plants to the stick, and 

 place the sticks about eight inches apart 

 in the house. We prefer housing the 

 crop at once to scaffolding. 



Having allowed the crop to yellow, we 

 apply slow fires at first, and increase the 

 heat gradually until about the third day, 

 when full heat may be applied. The great 

 danger in firing is in applying too much 

 heat at first. We think a better color is 

 given by allowing the fires to go down at 

 night than by keeping them up constantly. 

 The firing should be continued until' the 

 stem is thoroughly cured up ; and if the 

 crop be allowed to hang in the house until 

 warm weather, must be removed in warm 

 damp weather to prevent mould. 



Wm. Garth, 



R. W. N. Noland. 



Ivy Creek, Albemarle, Va. 



The land for tobacco, if it be an old lot, 

 and particularly a clover lot, should be 

 broken up close and tolerably deep in 

 autumn. If the subsoil be a clod, wet or 

 tenacious clay, only the surface should be 

 inverted by the ploughs — and a subsoil 

 plough ought to be run in the furrow of 

 the turning plough. But if it be a dry, 

 red clay a few inches may be thrown up 

 by the turning plough without injury. In 

 any case, the land ought to be rough- 

 ploughed about mid-winter, say in Janua- 

 ry, for the better amelioration of the soil, 

 and'still more for the destruction of the 

 cut-worm. I have not often been troubled 

 by this pest except when this ploughing 

 has been omitted. The best time to ap- 

 ply manure is at this ploughing — but if 

 not applied then, let it be put on hy- all 

 means before the corn crop is planted — 

 and plough it in as fast as it is hauled to 

 the ground, A heavy drag ought to be 

 run over the land just before it is bedded, 

 and the beds thrown up with one-horse 

 ploughs. When ready to plant, send a 

 steady fellow, with a three-foot stick in 

 his hand, walking along the beds and test- 

 ing his stride occasionally by the stick- 

 Chop in his footprints with hill hoes, clap 

 and plant thus in the beds. If the land 

 has been prepared as early as indicated, 

 there will be season enough in it to plant 

 any time in May, without a rain, and the 



f plants will live better than when planted 

 just after a rain ; and if the weather con- 

 tinue dry after planting, there will be less 

 danger of injury to the tobacco from the 

 formation of hard lumps around the roots. 

 If proper attention has been given to the 

 plant-beds, the plants will be ready by the 

 middle of May. But if it should be ne- 

 cessary to plant in June, or to re-plant 

 much in that month, it is an excellent 

 practice to put a good handful of dry 

 wheat chaff upon the plant as soon as it 

 is stuck. This covering is better than any 

 other I have used, and so far as I know, 

 the credit of discovering it is due to an 

 overseer in this neighborhood. The chaff 

 must never be removed ; every living 

 plant will grow up through it in a few 

 days, and thus all " missing" hills will be 

 easily recognized in re-planting. 



Instead of "ridging down," or "scra- 

 ping down," it is far better to put a little 

 fresh earth to the plants at the first work- 

 ing. Run three-tooth cultivators twice in 

 the row, and deep as one horse can draw 

 them; and then let every hoe-hand take 

 one bed and work it as in weeding corn. 

 As soon as" the tobacco starts, or as soon 

 as the grass begins to spring up, or when- 

 ever a crust forms on the surface, it will 

 need a second working. I am disposed to 

 think that the growth of the crop depends 

 mainly upon this work. At any rate I 

 have never seen a good crop made that 

 had been slighted at this time ; it is now 

 that the plants take a set, either running 

 up with a slender stalk and narrow, short 

 leaf ; or spreading out, broad and leafy. 

 It ought to be thoroughly stirred now, and 

 this will be done best by running broadfoot 

 coulters close to the plants, two or four 

 times in a row. Follow the coulters with 

 small dagons, throwing the earth to the 

 plants. Then with hoes dig deep in the 

 step, and finish by putting up moderate 

 hills. An old and skilful planter of my 

 acquaintance says that fire may be pre- 

 vented, in a great degree, by making small 

 hills. He says facts led him to this belief, 

 and he shows his faith by his works. The 

 explanation is, that a large hill absorbs 

 more water and retains it longer than a 

 small one. It is probable that very deep 

 ploughing is a better preventive. It is 

 chiefly upon light soils underlaid by tena- 

 cious clays that the worst fire appears, and 

 deep ploughing is certainly the preventive 



