The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1885-10-07
Tobacco Culture.

Tobacco Culture.
The following interesting letter, re-
ceived from Commissioner Butler, will
also appear in the regort Of the State
agricultural department on the 10Th
instant:
LANDsFoRD CHESTER Co., S. c.,
September u, 1855.
Col. \. ?. Butler, Commissioner OF
Agriculture, Columbia, S. C.--Dcai
Sir: Realizing, after eight years eN-
perience, 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. l soon became
convinced that portion of my land
was adapted to the growth Of "bright
yellow" tobacco, the production OF
which has done so much of late years
to enrich certain sections Of North
Carolina and Virginia. Whether our
climate would prove equally suitable
could be proven only by actual eXper-
imcnt. This experiment l decided to
make.
In November last l employed in
Vance county, n. c., Young man
versed in tobacco culture and curing,
and on the first day Of January, 1883,
began work to prepare for my first
crop. DESTROYS Of giving it fair trial
| cleared out and prepared for culti-
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 scdge.
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, l reduced to the finest tilth during
the months of March, April and May,
and in the latter month prepared them
all for the reception of my plantS-trst
manuring them-the new ground with
200 pounds of blood ammoniated 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 q little more thau 1000 pounds per
sore, both applied in the drill and bed
ded III as for cotton, and afterwards
chilled" by checking with . stlvight
shovel and drawing ND with hand hoes
aud "patting" to retain the moisture
and Indicate the place for setting the
plant. Not this work l sound easy,
and bv the l0tlr~of May had all my
tobacco land ready two horses
and three extra hoe hanaass@two OF
them boys under Is years. m~sadl.
ton had planted twelve acres III 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 OH branch
bottoms, the object being to provide
for the extreme Of wet or dry, and
with the 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 vcry'
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 q shower
in April, probcrbial for her smiles and
tears. In the latter part Of May we
had two small showers, hut not enough
to wet the ground halt an inch, Sc my
upland beds did practically no good,
the dry cold did practically no good,
the dry cold wind "blowing the plants
Off the bed," as the saying goes, and
the 'flca beetle" and "fy" literally
eating mp what remaindcd. My bot
tom beds, however, did their full duty
and furnished me all the plants I need
cd or had time and season to set.
The first shower in May (about the
2Oth) I set $4,000 plants, of which,
perhaps 10000 lived. The second
shower, about the 2Sth, l set 24,00C,
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 process0
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,
but the terrible dry hot weather im-
medialely thereafter killed 10 or l2,-
900 of them, and it was not until the
4th of July that we had season Sniff
cient to wet the ground, and, late as it
was, reset enough land to bring my
living plants ny to $4,000, or enough
scattered over II acres Of land to plant
10 acres fully. From the 4th of July
to 29lh August We had not a drop of
rain, and, OF course the tobacco grew
slowly, but the ground having been
once wet it did not die, and | con-
tinued to work it, ploughing each way
Zone harrow to the row, with 20 inch