The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-12-21

Il
| ing the seed If cotton seed meal has been
used, owing to its tendency to burn any
| tender seed, and the tobacco is one of the
| smallest and most tender of all seeds. In
sowing the seeds care must be taken to
scatter them as evenly as possible and
not too thick. After they are sown, dry
white sand should be scattered all over
the bed to slightly cover the seed, this be-
ing superior to raking 1t, and then the
bed should be well tramped with the feet
This is best done by tying fourteen inch
boards on the feet and going over the
bed carefully, pressing the soil as evenly
as possible and avoiding any hollows in
it for rain to stand in.
When @your plants have made a good
growth and you feel certain of a good
supply for transplanting then begin to
prepare your land for the crop. / find
ground that had sweet or Irish potatoes
for the previous crop does best to follow
with tobacco as the soil is thoroughly
well pulverized and in good physical con-
dition to respond readily TO liberal fer
tilization. In starting out to fertize for
tobacco we should bear in mind the fact
that he is dealing with one of the gross
est of feeders and must fertilize accord
ingly If he wants good crops. On our
ordinary sandy pine lands of this state
at least LOCO pounds per acre are required
and 1880 pounds would still be better;
that is providing your can assimulate
that much. Some scatter the fertilizer in
the burrows, but l have had the best re-
suits with scattering it broadcast and
working it into the soil with the cult
vator
And now comes the important point of
the whole matter, and that is the proper
fertilizer to apply. Analysis of the tobac-
co plant shows an extraordinarily high
percentage of potash and if we want a
To hot CT do
for it. ] have repeatedly tried to get
complete fertilizer high enough in potash
to suit, but hitherto 1 have completely
failed in my quest. A complete tobacco
fertilizer should analyZe as follows: Ten
to p per cent of potash land the source
of the potash must be sulphate of potash,
6 to s per cent. phosphoric acid land
avoid coarse bone phosphate, use the finest
rock phosphate) and about 3 per cent.
nitrogen Cotton seed meal is the best
source of nitrogen 1 have yet metz. After
this is applied to the land and well worked
in the soil the ground must be smoothed
off by narrowing it and if possible, by
rolling it also. Then lay off shallow fur
rows, about three and a half feet apart
with small scooter pillow (this is for Ha-
Vana tobacco; If the larger kinds are
grown four feet between burrows will be
necessary. The plants should be set in
this turroW in the same as you would set
out cabbage, that is, with a dibble. To
do this well requires three persons and an
other to carry water cloudy day
should be chosen for this operation. and
if carefully done every single plant will
live. My mode of doing this is as fol-
lows: One man goes first, making the
holes for the plants about two feet apart :
the next one follows with the plants and
places them in this hole just up to the
first leaf; the next follows with another
dibble and presses the soil to the roots
OF the plant, leaving another hole outside
OF the plant, while the fourth one fills
with water, and this water percolat-
ing through the soil and among the roots
OF the plant insures its growth right away.
-Four persons in this way can easily trans
plant twelve to fourteen thousand plants
IN a day 1t should always be aimed at 10
set as many plants at one time as possible,
and the most to be set at the first planting
1t is far better to let some plants get ex-
ira large before removing from the seed
bed, than to have too many paintings; in
this way you avoid the annoyance of plants
Of all sizes and in all stages among your
crop. Seed sown in January should have
plants ready early in April and that will
give at least two cuttings, and If the season
is favorable three. There are a great MANY
more points to be followed in the further
stages of the plants growth. but / have
made this too long already, and will touch
on these at some future period. One WORD
more, in growing a tobacco crop, the main
point is plenty of potash in your fertilizer
and of the right sort. If you have that vol
need not fear but you will make a success
of it, and when il comes to the curing
point If you follow this advice you will be
astonished to find the difference il makes
in your product. c. b. McQuarrie.
DeFuniak Springs, Fla