New-York tribune., 1873-12-13
TOBACCO IN CALIFORNIA.
A NEW METHOD OF CURING THE LEAF

IPRoM AN OCCASIONAL CORRESPONDENT OF THE rRibuHhJ
SAN Francisco. Cal Oct. 2l.-The manufacture
of cigars il of the largest Industries oi '"
Francisco. Last year the Government feceN.'
taxes on 7s000OO0 cigars made in the state OF Oi'
fornia, and in september alone taxes were palu ", ,
S0O0O00 But though this State has thousands %,
acres of land well fitted to produce tobacco anu a
though the "weed" has been grown here lor ~
years with great success so far as get'is :"
heavy crop is concerned, doubt if even lVoouV VI
cigars have until this Fall, been made OF tobacco
raised in the State.
There has. however been no lack of efforts to pro,
duce here tobacco fit to manufacture into cigars anu
for smoking and chewing purposes. The SOL il
many parts of the State is peculiarly adapted 10
plant; the climate, mild and regular favored i'S
growth and FASTENED its perfection. The pes' s,o'
was procured from Connecticut, Kentucky VIZ
ginia Florida, and Cuba. But for many years 'no
product was rank coarse and filter Tor sheep-""'N
than for any other commercial purpose. ,
Meantime, however, not few men familiar WIN
the old processes of raising and curing the plant
have tried their best ingenuity to improve 'nc
quality 1t was thought that the soil was too neh'
because the tobacco makes q rapid and heaVy
growth but planting on thinner or older SOIL diu
not answer. Several methods Of curing were con-
triyed and there is now reason to believe that io
one known ns the Cup process from the name OF its
patentee. will produce the desired result htu
heard and read so much about It, and ABOUT INC
merit of the tobacco produced by IT. that last "eoh
went down to Glroy 20 or so miles south OF here W
see what had really been accomplished. Inc account
give you below will probably interest many oiyoui
tobacco growing and manufacturing readers "niio
it will fear painfully affect the spirits OF the anu
tobaccOnsts; for there is reason to DeileNe In"'
with the help of the Culp process tobacco VIII pe
come presently one of the important and valuable
crops of this State
must premise that am not an expert in tobacco; I;
nor familiar with the methods pursued Ill Inc East
have seen a tobacco field and the inside OF Con
necticut curing house. and that is about all give
you, therefore. not opinions but facts.
GirOy stands in a long and broad pialn, avery
rich piece of alluvial bottom, with water 50 abun-
lant that artesian wells easily bored and very
common. At the depth of l30 feet they get howlhe
wells and it happened in one case of which heaid
that the water came up with such force as to pre-
vent the casing going down into the well, ana tho
pressure Of the water broke away the ground, en-
larged the bore of the well and threatened to hood
considerable area so that the farmers gathered IN
force and by means OF an cassOn loaded with
stones and with many cart-loads OF stones BESIDES
plugged up the dangerous hole.
The land is a deep alluyial loan, easily worked
and here, and in some neighbOrng valleys, many
tobacco growers have been engaged for the last 10
or 10 years. Mr. Culp. who was tobacco grower
and if understood him rightly also a manufac-
turer in New-York for some years before he came
here and who appears, at any rate, TO be a very
thorough farmer and a lover of clean fields, has
planted tobacco here for Is years. He has farm OF
about 200 acres 400 Of which have this year been IN
tobacco. From him and others learned the follow
ing particulars of the way in which they cultivate
the plant in California. They SOW the seed
from the lst to the 10th Of January, and some
times even in December The beds are pre-
pared and sown as in the East, except that
thev do not always burn the ground over which if
remember rightly is invariably done in Missouri and
Kentucky. In this season, the days are always warm
enough for the little plants; but there are light
frosts at night and they protected against these
hv frames covered with thin cotton cloth The fields
are plowed-by the best grOwers-ten inches deep;
cross-plowed, land narrowed until the soil IL fine,
and then ridged-that Is to say two burrows are
thrown together. This saves the plants from harm
by heavy rain, and also makes the ground warmer
and is found to start the plants more quickly.
Planting in the fields begins about the oth OF Aprll;
and the plants fare set foot apart in the rows,
are from Havana seed; if Connecticut or Florida,
they stand Is inches OF two feet apart in the rows.
On the Culp farm this year they had grown beside
Havana and Florida for their crop, Latakia, Hun
ealian. Mexican Virginia, Connecticut seed
Standard Bureigh, white lead, and some other
kinds, by way of experiment. Cultivators and
shovel plows are used TO keep the soil loose and
clean: If the weather should prove damp and cold
the shovel plow is used to make the ridges somewhat
higher They go over the fields twice in the season
with these tools, using the hoe freely where weeds
get into the Last year in 20 days after they
were done planting on the Culp place they had
two bales Of tobacco. This however is
not common, and was done by very close manage
ment, and warm SOIL
All the tobacco growers with whom spoke assert
that they are not troubled with that hdeous crea-
'ture "the worm" They attribute this part to the
excellence of their soil and partly to the abundance
of birds and yellow jackets. They do not worn
their crop; il seems, which must give them an envi-
able advantage over Eastern growers.
They do not always top" the Havana, and they
do very little suckerng" If the ground is clean,
they let the suckers from the root grow, and these
become as large and heavy rs the original plant
They believe that the soil is strong enough to bear
the plants and smokers, and that they get better
leaf and Gner quality without suckering.
The planting is continued from April until the
latter part of July, so TO let the crop come IN
gradually the last planting may be caught by an
early frost, but whatever they plant before the lst
of July is safe in any season. Cutting begins about
the 4th of June and this year they cutting sfi
on the 10Th of October. The earlier cut plants
sprout again at once, and mature a second and even
a third crop. Mr.. Culp told me that he had taken
four crops of Havana in one year from the same
field and considerable fields Of third crop Just
cut OF standing, but in some cases the frost had
caught this If the soil is in perfect Ordcr we can
here make a crop of Havana in 40 days from the
planting" said Mr.. Culp to me- One man can pre-
pare and take care Of 10 acres here, keeping
IL in GOOD order. For plantinp and cutting,