The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1890-07-24
TOBACCOCULTURE.
VALUABLE AND INTERESTING TREATISEI
On the Subject of Topping, Priming, Curing and
Handling the Weed.

done-they would never appear in
such uncomfortable hordes later in the
season. The suckers should be pulled
off every week as they appear, and
ought never to be permitted to get
over two inches long for if permitted
to grow large they abstract much that
would otherwise go to perfect a rich,
silky leaf No planter need expect a
crop of fine grade who does not pull
off the suckers while small, and pre-
vent the horn worms from riddling the
leaves.
CUTTING AND HOUSING
Do not be in a hurry to begin cut
ting your tobacco until it is ripe, and
enough fully and uniformly ripe to fill
a barn. A thin butcher or shoe knife,
we'll sharpened, and wrapped with a
soft cloth around the handle and ex-
tending an inch along the blade, will
do the work efectually and be easy to
the hand. Try it. Put knives into
the hands of experienced cutters only,
men who know ripe tobacco, and will
select plants uniform in color and tex
ture, and will cut no other. Have
your sticks all ready in the field, and
placed in piles convenient sticking a
stick vertically in tie ground over
each pile that they may be more easily
found when wanted. Pine sticks, rived
three -tourths of an inch by one and
one-fourth inch, and four and one-half
feet long, drawn smooth, are best.
Start together two cutters and one
stick holder-the cutters carrying two
rows each and the stick k-holder walking
between them. The cutter takes hold
Of the plant with his left hand at the
top near where the knife enters the
stalk with his right he splits the stalk
down the centre observing to guide
the knife so as not to sever the leaves
to within three inches of the point he
intends to sever the stalk from the hill;
and as the knife descends his left hand
follows the slit or opening, and when
the plant is severed from the hill, by a
dexterous movement OF the left hand
the plant is straddled across the stick
in the hands of the holder. When the
stick has received about SIX medium
plants, If intended for brights, it is
ready to 60 to the barn, either carried
by hand if near, or hauled on a wagon
it distant. If it is necessary to use the
wagon, prepare bed sixteen feet long
to hold three coops or piles, on which
place tobacco as cut, and after placing
twenty five or thirty sticks of cut to-
bacco on each coop, drive to the barn
to be unloaded.
Tobacco suitable for brights is best
handled in this way, as it is bruised
less than if handled by any other
mode. Try it, planters, and kn0v for
yourselves. Very heavy tobacco will
break less if, after being cut by the
above mode, the sticks are placed
gently on the ground and the plants
allowed to wilt before being removed
to the barn. But tobacco of medium
size bruises less to handle it without
whiting. Cutting and housing by this
mode you never have any sun-cured
tobacco. For brights, it has been
found best to commence curing at once,
as soon as the barn can be filled.
"sUN-CURED TOBACCO
lust here it may be we'll to give our
practice in sun-curing. If the crop is
too rich and coarse for brights, then it
may be good policy to cure it sweet.
To do this properly, erect scaffolds at
or near the barns, on which place the
tobacco as soon as cut. But some, in
order to obviate the hauling of heavy
green tobacco, place the scaffolds in
or near the tobacco field. But it is
never safe to scaffold tobacco away
from the barn for after the leaf is par
TALLY dry it ought never to be caught
out in the rain; which may happen if
the tobacco is placed on scaffolds away
from the barn. When rain threatens,
that on scaffolds near the barn may
very soon be placed out of danger, but
not so that on scaffolds afar off,
But the hue cured filters command
nearly or quite as much as sun-cured
and the risk is much less.
To cure filters with hues, let the to
bacco be placed in the barn as soon as
cut, and raise the heat in the barn to
eighty-hve or ninety degrees Fahren-
heit, and then 60 about other business.
Kindle fires in the flues every morning,
raising the heat to ninety degrees, and
then leave as before, and continue to
do this for four or FIVE days until the
tobacco is thoroughly yellowed. II
the tobacco has much sap, it may be
necessary to continue the yellowing
process from FIVE to seven days to yell
low properly. When the leaves have
assumed a mottled, piebald appear
ance, run the heat to one hundred de-
grees and let it remain at that point
for three or four hours. Then raise
the heat two and halt degrees an
hour until one hundred and thirty is
reached. Keep the heat at this point
until the leaf is cured, and then move
up gradually to one hundred and sew,
| enty or one hundred and eighty, and
thus cure stalk and stem. If cured
properly, there will be much of the
leaf mahogany, while the remainder
| will run from a bright dapple to a
cherry red.
"sHIPPING TOBACCO"