Tabor City tribune. (Tabor City, N.C.) 1946-1991, 1963-04-17

utliiLiIlS SiildIl pants IN inc
greenhouse al BcltSville.
In approximately two years.
We have screened 5,278 COM
3undS. Five hundrci and six -.
I. these nave retarded Suckl +
III attn by al least 80 percent
without recognizable adverse
SIDE effects ON the plants.
The second step of our re
search program is To- test COM
pounds that have shown prom
iSC in greenhouse tests On
iicld-grown tobacco plants ~
.-uCrtJ Rico. IhlS Is done dur
ing the winter season and per-
mitS further Scyeunint OF the
test chemicals.
Those cnCmicalS that show
cd the most promise in winter
tests IN Puerto Rico one year
ago were tested last summer in
u, tnird step oi our program
consisting ri field tests ii
BoltSvIlic and in SIX nthr:
statcS. Al least two cac'ui,rif
: Showcj enough promise SO
,huy Will Dc Held tested again
his summer.
Al the present time, one CG
our scientists is in Puerto Rico
To conduct tests on an entirely
new series OF chemicals thai
have come from the green
house screening program. Tn"
best of these Will be tested TIA.
summer III our field plots in
representatives tobacco areas.
Before recommending any
new compounds 10 growers fr.
tobacco sucker control. CSpcci-
ally those materials Of a grow
th-rCgulator type, such as ma
lcic hydraZidC. il will be NJ
cessary To go through a iiu.i
phase Of testing.
In cooperation with cigar
cite manufacturing Companies,
we will determine the effects
Of the compound ON chemical
and physical properties of tn"
leaf and the paldtabiiity 81
smoke from treated tobacco.
Those compounds that have
completed all phases of t"Stius
and meet farmer and manu-
tactU".r requirements viii
then be considered acceptable
sucker control CUmpCuuTf
wDI,.y ~. II, pumCnU.tIun by
the Department. We haze good
reason To- believe That Tia,
sucker control problem Of to-
baccO can be solved.
One portipnl of our research
mott discussed deals 1wqth cX-
perimentS using oils or com
| pounds of oils. Oils are known
to control tobacco suckers 70
search with compounds Of this
/ type and are testing numerous
, vegetable oils, such as cotton
seed, peanut and corn oil.
You may be interested Ia
know that in RhodcSia. where
use of MH-30 is banned by
law. oils are used for sucker
control and approximately 10
percent of the acreage of iluC-
cured tobacco.
Further research to seek a
solution to the problem of to-
bacco sucker control should be
directed along the following
lines: Cd Continue the Cvalu-
alton of known and new syn
thctic growth regulator type
compounds. (2) further invest
igatc common vegetable oils
that have tobacco bud-inhibit-
ing properties and other COM
pounds of a nOn-hOrmOnal ma
turc, and CD extract naturally
occurring hormunCS to tODac-
co plans that will inhibit bud
growth.
An expanded research pro-
gram would be desirable. We
nave been trying To do what
we can to remedy the situation
as funds are made available
to us. Additional personnel
trained in plant physiology,
biochemiStry, and chemistry
could be efficiently utilized 10
accelerate our present program
on tobacco sucker control and
open new areas of research not
now being investigated.
This outline of needs, how
ever, is not to be considered
as a budget request since the
urgency of this matter in rela-
ton to the many other needs
for funds has not been review
ed by the Department or the
| Bureau of the Budget.
We would be pleased to have
you and other members OF
Congress visit our research
station at BeltSville.
Sincerely yours.
Thomas Thcis, Chief
Tobacco and Sugar
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