152 
THE TROPICAL AGRlCULTURiST. [Sept. 1, 1903. 
sizes are 40 and 45 centimetre leaves, for from 
such leaves the manufacturer can obtain four 
cigar vrrappers from each leaf, w^ith but 
little waste. After such a suitable wrapper 
leaf is grown, it must be properly cured, 
assorted and classified. The manufacturer 
can never afford to pay a high price for a 
bale of tobacco, unless he can calculate just 
how many suitable leaves it will contain. 
This is one reason why Sumatran tobacco com- 
mands such a high value, for so carefully is 
the grading and assorting done that the 
manufacture knows how many cigars each 
package of tobacco will wrap, and that the 
colour will be uniform. Wrapper tobacco 
should be uniform in size, color, and texture ; 
then the buyer knows what he is getting and 
is willing to pay a good price. 
For cigar fillers the leaves should be some- 
what shorter, of medium body, have a rich 
brown colour and burn smoothly and freely. 
The quality of the filler determines the 
character of the cigar ; hence the filler must 
possess the desirable aroma that distinguishes 
a good cigar. 
Philippine tobacco has some of the above 
properties, and has earned its reputation on 
account of its agreeable aroma, fine veins and 
notable elasticity. This applies only to the 
better quality of tobacco grown on the allu- 
vial lands of the Cagayan River in northern 
Luzon. The tobacco grown in the Visayan 
Islands is coarser, uneven in colour, and of 
greater strength. From the provinces along 
the west coast of northern Luzon the tobacco 
is of heavy body, and that grown near the 
sea has but little combustibility. Its ragged, 
broken character also lowers its mai'ket value. 
The tobacco grown in Nueva Bcija was 
formerly considered fine, but the colour was a 
decided yellow, and the taste somewhat 
bitter, 
PREPARATION OF THE SEED BBO. 
No step in the cultivation of tobacco is 
more important than proper care in the pre- 
paration and sowing of the seed beds. This 
work can not be neglected without running 
the risk of a partial or total failure of the 
crop. To make good seed beds is a laborious 
task and requires good judgment in the 
selection of the location, soil and in the pre- 
paration of the land. To have plenty of good, 
strong, healthy plants is the surest founda- 
tion for a good crop of tobacco, provided they 
are from seed true to the desired standard, 
It is very important that in the preparation 
of the seed bed an abundant supply of seed 
should be sown, and provisions made for a 
succession of plants ; so that, when the 
planting season comes, the supply of plants 
suitable for transplanting will be ample for 
the purpose, and the supply will be main- 
tained throughout the period in which the 
planting is to be done. 
The best soil for the seed bed is a rich, 
friable, dark, virgin loam or sandy loam. A 
d«ep, well-drained soil is greatly to be pre 
ferred. The necessary operations of tilling 
and stirring the soil should precede sowing 
the seed by several weeks. It is usually 
customary to thoroughly plow or spade the 
land and mark the land off into a number of 
beds surrounded by boards. In the famous 
Deli district in Sumatra the beds are built up 
about 30 centimetres high and surrounded by 
ditches. The size and number of the beds 
varies, but they are usually rectangular in 
size, with suitable walks or passageways 
between them. The beds are highly fertilized 
with rich manures or with any complete, 
specially prepared commercial fertilizer. 
Stable mauure, or any complete guano, may 
be used. Care should be taken to thoroughly 
mix the fertilizers with the soil, so that 
the greatest amount of plant food may be 
available for the young plants. In the case 
of old lands, it is always advisable to 
burn the land over, to insure safety against 
grass and weeds. With new land the 
trouble from such sources is slight ; but bui'n- 
ing is sometimes practised, to increase the 
the richness of the soil by adding the ferti- 
lizing properties of the burned wood. The 
burning is usually done one week before plant- 
ing the seed. After burning, the soil is well 
spaded and all roots and tufts are carefully 
removed, and the surface made loose and 
smooth. Then the soil is well watered and 
the seed mixed with sand, or sifted wood 
ashes are nicely spread over the surface. 
After the seeds are sown the soil should be 
thoroughly compacted with a heavy roller and 
if the soil is at all dry, the beds should be 
watered and kept continuously moist, but not 
wet, until the plants are set out. It is best to 
plant new seed but at intervals of every few 
days, in order to be sure to always have 
fresh plants of proper size on hand when the 
time comes for transplanting. On a commer- 
cial scale it requires about 45 grams of seed 
to sow a bed 1 hectare iu size. In the Caga- 
yan Valley the seed is sown in the beds dur- 
ing the latter part of September and the 
first weeks of October, while the transplant- 
ing is made during the early part of Decem- 
ber. This period of planting the seed bed 
varies slightly in the different parts of the 
Archipelago, on account of the varied clima- 
tic conditions ; but practically all of the 
transplanting is done during the month of 
December, as experience has shown this to be 
the best month for such operations. In many 
parts of the Philippines it will be found ad- 
visable to construct some sort of cover for the 
seed bed, to protect the seeds and tender 
plants from the intense heat of the sun. A 
suitable shelter made of straw, cogon grass, 
ornipapalm, I'aised about 1 metre above the 
ground, will suffice. It should be so arranged 
that the covering can be put close together or 
spread out to regulate the amount of heat 
received by the small plants. After a few 
weeks this covering can be removed alto- 
gether and kept to serve ^for another bed. 
White ants and sometimes caterpillars aii<^ 
