The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-06-05

9u'iHS VI uue crop. Inc complete
bulletin can be had on application.
THE METHODS OF CULTIVATION.
The tobacco plant grows OFF very
quickly, and the spread of its roots is
very rapid. The lateral roots <un very
near the surface, and the cultivation of
Jhe plant should necessarily be shallow.
a Planet, Jr., cultivatOr or a wide sweep
are good tools to use. In grassy land it
VIII be necessary to hoe once, and possibly
more. Fhe plant must be protected from
grass and weeds
In blowing it is better to throw the
dirt slightly to the plant and thus form
a low bed in the row. Three or four
ploWlngs and one hOeing in grassy land is
usually sufficient work to make a crop, and
IN new lands less. 1t may be only neces-
sary for the last working to run, very
shallow, sweep through the middle of
furrow to kill young grass.
TOPPING AND sUCKERING.
There is a difference of opinion as to the
time ,he plant should be topped. The sta
ton IS experimenting on this point, but
has not decided it so far by sufficient test
ing. The generally prevailing opinion is
that when the plant forms it's blossom buds
they should be pinched of. At this time
the plant has formed from twelve to six
teen and even more leaves. After top
ping, sprouts begin to shoot out from
stalk whore the leaf Joins it, These
should be pinched off and not allowed to
grow longer than twOOr three inches As
those sprouts grow very fast, sprouting
should be very closely looked after Care
should be taken not to pinch off the
sprouts below the bottom leaves, and as
the bottom leaves are not, as a rule, the
best, it may be well not TO take off the
sprouts for the first two. From these
sprouts below the bottom leaves, and
which come out above the first two, is
where the second, third, fourth and even
later crops are gathered.
HARVESTING
is very irregular. From the time it begins
until the crop is gathered, it is daily
work This work embraces the period
from the first ripening to the last. To-
baccO begins to ripen from six weeks to
two months after being transplanted
The best way to harvest is to cut the
stalk when ripe near the ground with a
sharp knife. In doing so avoid cutting off
the suckers or iniuring them. This should
be done by bending with the left hand and
cutting from below up The leaves should
not be stripped from the stalk Care
should be taken not to allow sand to get
on the leaves, as it very generally INJURIES
the sale of the crop. If the plant has not
begun to sucker when cut it will very
soon do so. Three or four suckers, if the
plant is healthy and the soil good, should
be allowed to grow. The second, third
and fourth crops should be treated in the
same way. The fourth crop is a small one
but the leaves serve as a filler, or for
smoking tobacco, and if gathered it makes
an excellent fertilizer. The stalks should
all be saved for this purpose and are valu-
able with which to mulch fruit trees. 1t
will very greatly increase the third and
fourth crop if cotton seed meal is worked
around the plant after the second cutting
or even the first, The great trouble with
inexperienced growers is to determine
however, soon settles this matter and it
is not difficult to learn. The novice
ought not to be deferred from planting
because of the want of this knowledge.
Color of leaves does not prove the best
rule to determine the ripeness of the
plant, although when the leaves begin to
tighten in color or spotted it is a good
sign. A better rule is that when the
leaves are doubled and pressed between
the fingers, they will snap.
THE CURING SHED OR BARN
NAV or may not be costly building in
our climate. For those who are beginners
it is not necessary to build a barn especi-
ally for the purpose if there is a gin house
on the premises or a log house that can be
used. have seen the very best quality
of tobacco cured in a log house, the iosts
of which were not six feet above the
floor A common wagon shed will serve
the purpose to begin with, if closed on the
sides by rough edge boards The tobacco
crop of the station is cured in the upper
part of wagon and tool house. A great
many persons will doubtless begin the cUl-
tivation of tobacco by planting from one
half of a five acres. In their interest the
above in written. For those who are de-
termined to make it their business and
who wish to build barns they can do so
cheaply with rough lumber.
The points to be observed are. ventila-
ton when needed, and the shutting it off
barn large enough to drive a wagon
through There is no necessity for a
wooden floor but the sills ought TO be laid
on brick or rock in our climate to prevent
rOtting and the space between the sillS
and the ground closed with plank
Frames from the top to the bottom should
be built inside on which to place poles or
laths on which to hang the tobacco to
dry. A sharp hollow spear that will fit a
lath. made sharp enough TO pierce through
the stalk should be used. The stalk
pierced and slipped on the lath or small
pole and repeated until the pole is full,
not allowing the leaves to touch each
other and then put i'll place on the frames,
is the cheapest, easiest and most expedi-
tious way of hanging tobaccoin the barns
1t. however, may be tied by strings to a
pole. or with a knife a slit may be cut in
the stalk and one end of the small pole or
lathe may be sharpened and pushed
through, but these methods are both
costly and tedious. Care should be taken
to economic all the space possible, and the
number of stalks to each lath or pole is
to be settled by the distance of frames
apart on which they are to rest. A shed
30x6O feet and from 10 to IA feet high is
sufficiently roomy TO cu2e five or six acres !
of tobacco Persons Who desire to build |
fancy barns can do so, keeping in view |
the necessity of ventilation both above |
and below
PREPARING THE CROP FOR MARKET.
The leaves are ready to strip from the |
stalk when the stems are sufficiently dry |
so as to show no sap when pinched. Be |
fore stripping, however, the leaves should |
be moist enough so that they will not
or break in handling. If the
weather is dry the tobacco becomes very
dry. but by giving it ventilation at night
by opening doors and windors, or during
a rain, the condition can be obtained for
A north or a northwest wind
dries tobacco very rapidly When they
blow shut up the barn.
In asserting, the top and bottom leaves
and those which are ragged should be put
TO themselves and tied into bundles rang