The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1885-10-22

that grand agricultural revolution
which claim must come orc we will
have any substantial progress or solid
Improvement in this country; then
and not until then, will we have that
"New South" they are writing SO much
about.
Let us not lcavc the whole rgricul-
tural department in the the hands of
the old men, but let cur young men
lay hold and make it an honorable
calling instead of Il disgrace as many
of us consider it now. s.R.R.
Tobacco Culture.
The following interesting letter, re-
ccivcd from Commissioner Butler, will
| also appear in the regort of the State
agricultural department on the 18th
instant:
LANDSFORD CHESTER Co., S. c.
September 21, 1885.
Col. A. p. Butler, Commissioners of
Agriculture, Columbia, S. C..-Dcar
Sir: Realizing, after eight years cX-
pericnce, both in planting and renting
out land for the cultivation of cotton
In this section, the necessity of finding
another or rather additional money
crop, [ began two years ago to invcs.
tigate and study the cultivation and
curing of tobacco. soon became
convinced that portion of my land
was adapted to the growth Of "bright
yellow" tobacco, the production of
| which has done 80 much of late years
to enrich certain sections of North
| Carolina and Virginia. Whether our
cltmate would prove equally suitable
could be proven only by actual exper-
imcnt. This experiment decided to
make.
| In Noycmber last 1 employed in
| Vance county, N. G., a young man
vcrscd in tobacco culture and curing,
and on the first day of Jannary, 1885,
began work to prepare for my first
crop. DESTROYS of giving it fair trial
cleared out and prepared for cult
vation seven acres of original forest
land of good quality and Of the proper
kind for the growth of bright tobacco,
viz, of gray sandy top soil with po--
rous yellow sandy subsoil. / also
selected about ten acres in different
| lots OF old lands, part in small pines of
| second growth, part in broom sedge,
and about two acres in fine state of
| cultivation, all of same character as
new ground already described. All of
this, by repeated plowings and harrow
| ing, lreduccd to the finest filth during
tho months of March, April and MAY,
| and In the latter month prepared them
all for the reception of my plants-first
manuring them-the new ground " with
200 pounds of blood ainm0niated sup
erphosphates, manufactured by the
| 'Domestic Fertilizer Company of Co
| lumbia,") and the old land with COM
post of stable manure, cotton seed,
| kainit and acid phosphate at the rate
| OF little more thau 1000 pounds Der
ecre, both applied in the drill and bed
| ded iu as for cotton, and afterwards
| chilled" by checking with a straight
shovel and drawing up with hand hoes
and "patting" to retain tho moisture
and Indicate the place for setting the
plant. All of this work / sound easy,
and by the 10th of May had all nv
tobacco land ready with two horses
and three extra hoe hands-two of
them boys under Is years. In addi-
tion had planted twelve acres i'm cot
ton, about the same in corn, besides
garden and patches. My plant beds
were prepared in January and Febru-
airy, part on upland and part on branch
bottoms, tho object being to provide
for the extreme of wet or dry, and
with tho hope of securing plants for
early setting from the warm upland
beds. The seed, all of best varieties
from yellow tobacco virgins of North
| Carolina, came well and proved very
hardy, some even standing the severe
tast of three or four inches of snow
without hurt in the middle of March,
From this date March ~ to about
the 10th of June, however, we had
positively no rain, not even o shower
in April, proberbial for her smiles and
tears. In the latter part of Nav we
had two small showers, but not enough
to wet the grohnd halt an inch, so nv
upland beds did practically no good.
the dry cold did practically no good,
the dry cold wind "blowing the plants
Off the bed" as tho soying goes. and
the "6ea beetle" and "dy" literally
eating mp what remainded. NY bot
tom beds, however, did their full duty
and furnished me all the plants / need
ed or had time and season TO set.
Tho first shower IN May (about the
20th) 1 act $1,000 plants, of which,
perhaps 10000 lived. The second
shower, about the 28th, L set $4,000,
saving not more than 10000, the hot
sun and dry ground killing the halt.
then set about 10000 with water, "a
Slow. tedious and costly process y
two-thirds of these lived and did well,
About the middle of June succeeded
In getting all my land once ser, and
perhaps, had 10000 plants then living.
put the terrible dry hot weather inn.
n1nneoolstsly nno thereafter killed 10 or 49,
4th Of July that we had season sniff
clent to wet the ground, and, late ne n |
was, reset enough land to bring INV
living plants ny TO 10000, or ei,ongb |
scattered over IL acres of land to plant |
10 acres fully. From the 4th of July
to 29lh August we mad not drop az
rain, and, of course the tobacco grew
slowly, but the ground having been
once wet It did not die, and i con.
tinued to work IL, plonghing each way
Zone harrow to the row, with 20 inch