Western sentinel. [volume] (Winston [i.e. Winston-Salem], N.C.) 1856-1886, 1886-03-25
TOBACCO FROM THE SEED TO THE
POCKET
BY B. F. HESTER, GRANVILLE CO.

BY B. F. HESTER, GRANVILLE co.
The prepare ton of land for the
crop will next claim your attention.
No land with red clay foundation
will make bright yellow tobacco. nor
will coarse sandy SOIL
A close grey soil filled with fine
sand on yellow clay foundation is
the only land on which I can make
the finest tobacco. On other lands
you can sometimes get size and color
but fail to get body or getting size and
body you fail in colot Body is pro-
duced by the presence of an oil that
gives the tobacco its soft, smooth feel
ing, and rich live appearance Lack
ing this, it will not bring fancy prices
and its cultivation is not more profit
able than many other crops, as the ex
perience of numbers of farmers in the
old tobacco sections will prove. Re-
peated plowings will be necessary to
fit the land for the manure and plants.
One of these ought to have been done
already if the land was fallow. If it
was cultivated clean last season, wait
until the grass begins to come up then
turn it over, and again later in the
spring. The first two plowings should
be diagonal with the way you intend
to run the rows, which should always
be North and South, if the lay of the
land will admit, and the tobacco plant
ed in checks and not drilled, thus Civ
ing every plant an equal exposure to
the sun almost the entire day. You
need not cultivate it across if the
Crab-grass doesn't compel you, as it
does mesometimes, during wet spell
in June.
Then you will find that with mule
and pillow you can by blowing and
crossing kill or hide the grass, while
hoes will actually do harm by uncoy
ering it. Mix your farm pen scrap
ings, woodpile trash, ashes and stable
manure in one heap, and at your earli-
est convenience after the LIST of April
haul it to the field, putting it in rows
2Ox20 feet apart, about bushels in a
pile. after smoothing the ground that
you may get it up clean when you
wish to strow it. Watch your plants.
If they are slow and will not be ready
by the 10th of May top dress them
with some highly ammoniated tertiliz
er, but be sure you don't apply it when
the plants are damp, too much at a
time; two light applications being
safer than one heavy one. If your
land is quick use fertilizer with a
smaller per centage of ammonia, and
more potash to prevent firing. If the
land is slow more ammonia will be
needed to hasten the crop. When
your plants are nearly ready you may
begin preparing land for planting, by
laying off the rows 3 feet inches
wide with a shovel pillow, or turning
pillow with very small wing, and cross
with an ordinary turning pillow 3 feet 4
inches wide. Drill just one-half the
fertilizer you intend useing on the
crop, with the manure in the rows, first
run and throw two burrows ON it, max
ing what is called list. If the season
is dry you may pat the list with hoes,
using in going across them, the check
burrows serving as guides. If the sea.
son should be wet don't pat, it causes
the land to harden and prevents the
plants starting off we'll. As soon after
planting as the land is in order, throw
out the middles 1t will be partial
working. Just as soon as the plants
take root begin cultiyating, and cult
vate, cultivate and cultivate. You
will be sure not to do more of it than
will pay if properly done. Use short
single trees, or better stretchers when
blowing after the tobacco has grown
large enough to nearly fill the row
Greasing the traces will be found OF
great service.
When blowing the tobacco the last
time SOW ON the other hall of the fer
tilizer. This may be done by lowering
your hand, scattering it along the rows
IF some of it should fall on the leaves
of the plants, it will not hurt, unless
the tobacco is damp. This application
will do more good than twice the quaint
ity put on when planted. 1t is of ne
use to put on at one time more foot
than the plant requires. You dom
give your mule nor your hog year.:
provision at one time, nor should your
crop be fed in that way When put
on at planting time large part of the
fer.ilizing properties of your fertilizer
are leached out of the land. and wher
the plant needs them they are not il
reach, its growth lie out off and a health,
maturity is out of the question.
/ Don't pillow tobacco alter topping it
If it has been properly cultivated be
fore, one scraping with hoes will fnisf
the crop. When plant has grown
! large enough for you to prime off tn,
leaves that came from the plant bed
and have ten leaves, the top one al
inch broad, left, it is large enough t.
top, that is to have the bud broken out
My own experience is that ten leaves i.
high enough to top tobacco, going
above that you lose at the bottom il
over-ripeness, more than you will gair
at the top in green tips. Begin top
ping at ten leaves, and as the season
advances reduce the number to haster
the maturing of the late plants.
Now comes the tug of war. Tobac
coiffy eggs never fail to hatch, nor. d.
the young worms ever die of gapes o.
cholera. It takes quick eyes and brisl
hands to distroy them, or else they
will ruin the crop. Some people us'
. sweetened solution of Cobalt in til,
blossom OF the jamestown weed fol
killing the fly. have tried it mysel
but am not certain that it is of an,
service. You can try it for yoursel
and we may reach satisfactory con
clusien by and by.
The suckers will begin to grow a
soon as the top is taken out, an / if no