The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1902-02-21
Culture and Curing Of Tobacco.
Continued from Ist bage.

y
the building should be kept we'll opened
and ventilated the first two weeks after
hanging, that the fresh current of air
may carry off the large amount of water
evaporating from the tobacco, and also
check any tendency to excessive heating.
During the whole time of curing, after
any protracted time of damp, muggy
weather, the shed should be opened un-
til the tobacco is thoroughly ventilated,
and partly dried off. To carry out both
of these principles the sheds should be
so constructed as to permit of it's being
tightly closed and also of it's being open
ed and thoroughly ventilated. Light
should be carefully excluded during the
curing process, especially in it's later
stages, as it is found that strong light
has an injurious effect upon the color of
the leaf. Even under the most favor
able conditions, a successful cure de-
ponds largely upon good management.
If the tobacco is cured in current of
air, care being taken not to drive the
moisture out too rapidly, change takes
place in the interior of the leaf, which
changes the color from green to brown.
If hung too CLOSELY, SO as to prevent the
free access of air, the color still changes
from green to brown by different pro-
cess of fermentation. The leaf looses it's
tenacity and elasticity and becomes sub
ject to pole burn and is more or less
spoiled by rot. The time required for
curing tobacco varied with the season.
Some seasons it progresses rapidly. AS
a rule, quick curing is the best. 1t can
only be accomplished when all the con-
ditions are favorable. Much depends
upon the temperature and moisture of
the outside atmosphere.
Prof r. S. Golf, of the Wisconsin EX-
perimental station, has shown that our
Wisconsin tobacco looses about 70 per
cent of its weight during the curing
process. The rate at which the water
passes off gradually increases from the
time the leaves are Wilted, until they
assume a brown color. The water ap
pears to be set free by the leaf, rather
than extracted from them by drying.
The changes in the color of tobacco
leaves, during the curing process, are
not the result of drying, but of certain
changes within the leaves themselves.
Ripe tobacco yields lighter color of
cured leaf than that which is less ma
consin Experimental station, by Prof.
points: Moist air is lighter than dryer
air at given temperature, and hence
tends to rise. Comparatively dry air
entering the curing house near the
ground and coming in contact with to-
bacco which is giving off moisture, as it
absorbs this water will gradually rise
through the building, absorbing more
and more moisture in it's course, until it
reaches the roof.
1t is important, therefore, not only that
the curing house shall have ventilators
through the roof, but that these be made
so that they can be opened and closed at
will, because these furnish an efficient
means for controlling the humidity, pro-
viding the weather boarding of the build
ing is tight as it should be. In ordinary
weather, it is better to use only the ven
tilating doors near the ground, and the
roof ventilators, leaving the side doors
closed, except as an emergency seems to
require special ventilation. Every cur
ing house should be raised at least two
feet from the ground, and have two
foot horizontal ventilators below the sill
running the entire length of both sides.
The control may be mainly exercised by
the roof ventilators, since by opening or
closing these, more or less, the air as it
rises between the hanging tobacco may
be compelled to rise more or less rapidly
as desirable. But it should be remem-
bered that when the external air is very
moist, as in rainy weather, this upward
current of air will largely cease, because
the absorption of water will be greatly
checked. In curing tobacco in Wiscon
sin there are two great dangers to be
avoided, pole burn and drying.
To avoid pole burn it is absolutely
! necessary to get rid of excessive warmsh
and moisture during the early stages of
the curing process. This can only be
done by a complete system of ventila-
ton. For this purpose, two foot, hori-
| zontal ventilators, should be- provided
near the ground. Eight inch horizontal
ventilators for each tier of tobacco, and
one more ventilator along the ridge pole.
| The ventilators on the sides of the cur
| ing house should open horizontally at
intervals of four feet, and run the full
length of the building. With these all
open the air can enter, not only near the
| ground but also below each tier of to-
bacco. Free ventilation near the roof is
absolutely necessary to allow the escape
of warm, moist air.
The second great danger is the drying
process. This is becoming more alarm
ing every year in Wisconsin, and was ex-
ceedingly bad during the curing season
of 1901, in which the conditions of the
atmosphere were SO excessively dry that
the tobacco hung in the sheds from the
first of September until the Goth OF
October, without enough moisture to IA