Tobacco

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Tobacco

 

 

Harvesting, or "priming," 

tobacco by hand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Priming, Topping, and Worming

Tobacco in its various stages of growth can be seen at the Homestead in the tobacco field where the crop is under cultivation.  Agricultural information in the census of 1870 indicates that Duke raised a smaller amount of tobacco than neighboring growers.  Tobacco cultivation around that time was a task which required long hours of work.  During the winter months, the site of the plant bed was burned and cultivated.  Burning was done to sterilize the soil and in turn decrease the probability of weeds and insects.  Soon the bed was sown and covered with finely-cut brush to protect the young seedlings from frost damage.  Preparation of the tobacco field itself was also begun in winter.  The soil was cleared of debris and fertilized.  When the ground had dried just enough, the field was plowed several times, and a peg-tooth harrow was used to further break the soil.

In May or June during the rainy season, the seedlings were transplanted from the plant bed to the field.  Workers first carefully drew the seedlings from the bed, laying each small plant at intervals in the field; other laborers followed, using a peg to form a hole for the seedling, after which the peg was employed to cover the roots with earth.

During the months that followed, the maturing plants required constant attention.  When it reached a height of two or three feet, each plant had to be "topped," a procedure in which the top portion of the plant was removed to control its future growth, and so provide more nourishment for the remaining leaves.  "Suckering" was the operation of removing new shoots or "suckers" which appeared at the base of the leaves after topping.  If not removed, these growths would rob the developing leaves of nourishment.  Several types of worms, including cutworms and hornworms, were a constant threat and, unless controlled, could quickly destroy the entire crop.  "Worming" techniques included using turkey and guinea fowl to control the pests, or simply picking the worms from the tobacco by hand and destroying them.

Tobacco that managed to survive insects or disease usually was ready for harvesting by late August or early September.  An experienced eye was required to determine the ripeness of individual plants; a ripened tobacco leaf appeared spotted and curled at the tip of the leaf.

During the early 1870s farmers usually cut the entire tobacco plant, instead of removing the leaves separately.  A small knife with a curved blade was used to split the stalk within three inches of its base; the entire plant was then severed below the split, inverted, and placed on the ground between the rows until gathered by other workers carrying tobacco sticks.  The sticks, about four and a half feet long, held seven or eight stalks of tobacco.  A nearby wagon carried the full sticks to the curing barn; the entire tobacco plant was cured, rather than single leaves--a practice which evolved and was in use later in the curing barn at the Duke farm.