Albuquerque daily citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1895-1903, 1901-08-22
TOBACCO CULTURE.
It Has Been Made a Success in New
Mexico.
A GOOD GRADE CAN Be RAISED.

Some interesting experiments In tc.
bacco culture have been made in New
Mexico during the past few years AMI
the fact Las been established that to-
bacco can be raised In this territory
and that It's intelligent culture should
bring a rice profit to New Mexico
ranch owners. AS a result Of the IN.
terest aroused through the correspond.
nee between James A. Davis, indus.
trial commissioner for the Atchison.
Topeka 4 Santa Fe Railway company,
and the Albuquerque Commercial
club. samples of the New Mexico prod
act were submitted to w. q. Pilking
ton OF Virginia, an authority or to-
bacco. He reported az follows:
THE tobacco you sent me has an
excellent flavor, but owing to the fact
that ii was cut before being thorough.
ly ripe 1t cured up green. In as dry "A
climate as New Mexico, with the prop.
err kind Of seed to begin with. tobac.
20 ought to cure a splendid bright red
color without using any fire at ali.
But in order to get the right color ami
flavor two things are necessary-the
right kind of seed and allowing the
plant to become thoroughly ripe.
In New Mexico the plant bed
should be made IN February and
should be from twenty to fifty yards
square, according to the size OF the
crop contemplated and should be irri-
gated. The pint bed should be put
in thorough order and the seed should
be sown IN It by the first of March.
The plants should he ready to set
out in June, If the ground Is in good
order; n rain or one irrigation will
make the crop. Tobacco requires less
water THAI any other plant | know Of.
The great trouble with us Is that we
have too much rain, which makes il
cabbage or bunch up. If we could
have moisture just when we wanted Il
and not too much, and such soil as you
have In the west, we would make the
finest tobacco In the world"
Further experimental planting last
scason resulted most satisfactorily.
These experiments were chiefly ca
ried OF by Major Frederick Muller at
Santa Fe. Herman Butcher at Albu.
querque and X. NJ. Stockton Mt Belen,
in the central part of the Rio Grandd
valley. Speaking of the latter district
Mr.. Stockton says:
Il have grown tobacco on a small
scale In this part of the territory for
the last thirty years with very salts
factory results. OF varieties for cigars
! have found the following to be es.
p~ecially adapted for this locality: Zim.
mer's Spanish, Comstock and Havana,
an imported seed. Besides these
have also grown Bonanza, Sterling,
Improved White Curley and General
Grant. My opinion is that the fine
Havana varieties will do as well here
as in Florida and that any tobacco
grown any where in the United States
can be grown with the same degree of
success in this part of the Rio Grande
valley"
In the vicinity OF Albuquerque Mr.,
Butcher, who has amassed a fortune
from truck gardening, has me with
the most pronounced success. His
experiments have been made with
such varieties as Zimmer's Spanish,
the small Cuban Havana and large
Havana, all of which did well, but the
best reports came from the small Hav'
ana, tObacconists in Louisville, Ky.
declaring that when II is properly
cured 1t is fully the equal OF the i'm
ported Cuban article and superior
even TO the high grade tobacco which
in recent years has brought Willett
county, Texas, into widespread fame
and proved so highly profitable to the
farmers thereabouts. Samples of Mr.
Blucher's product are now undergoing
n ten months sweating process in tn
establishment of a dealer In Ohio, VIII;
confidently predicts that It will com
through the test with results that wi,
prove a surprise TO those engaged gen
orally in the tobacco trade. Properl!
handled it is said these finer grade
of tobacco will yield in New Mexic
1000 pounds 10 the acre, worth in tn
markets OF the county 5000 to $1,00l
This season, through Mr.. Blueher's II
terest in the subject. a Mr.. Hunter,
Kentuckian, has been induced to SO
out some 10000 plants of the smal
Cuban variety near Bernalillo and O
this writing they are reported as
very promising stand.
Thus II appears that the near futur
is very encouraging for the introduC
tion Of a new and highly profitable 1t
dustry in New Mexico. With the RI
suits thus far attained, with a soil an
climate that seem to be special
I adapted to tobacco culture and a
y abundance Of cheap and reliable labo
: at hand, there would seem to be n
obstacle in the way Of making tobal
b co raising one of the chief sources {
q productive wealth t~hroughout the RI