TO BACCO CULTURE IN THE PROVINCE OF A AUCKLAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XX, Issue 6815, 20 September 1883, Page 6

TO BACCO CULTURE IN THE PROVINCE OF A AUCKLAND.

inr j. h. (hbxer, Epson. I shall endeavour in the to teas plain and explicit !° as I write f,om my own *■< several years, I trust it may prov. those wno contemplate J a ". d mo * b remunerative cron f ° - ; favoured province. U P H) cgf Soil.—Our volcanic soils er ow -j, quality of tobacco, also newly broken up. C'ay soil" iar "l, land is unfit for this cron , in T ! * a «p th'rough'y drained and d r y P ' & light, alluvisl fern land of this th ° would grow a fine leaf, if manured P k°! ißte Without. Well jotted farmyard 1' by far the best,, as it seems to n the constituents, required, by th» i a!! develop its finest qualities. 1 to with;, at manure, is better than anv c gar tobacco,, but in every ~ , r f " peuds on the after culture itulating land is preferable to ° acase nf heavy fains, but, if ths i chQfen, numerous Shallow, or*n j- '* should be formed, in order to of water lodging, among the pCo! « haeco land ,ugh°t to b e g de ep lv nl > when perfectly dry,, m May, rough state until sprint - Q » weather, eross-ploughed°' ha™»J Q ■'? roiled. Presuming there ar*° \ collect all roots of every kind nii»°and burn. Spread th 2 aSf* again Supposing all this to be done fe middle of iseptomber lef . •> until p'anting time; * CUOICE of Sees _T J,,-.. varieties; of tobacco, and ' bv ***>' have proved that those best suifed 1 A.ickUna climate are the Havana necticut seed-leaf, a nd Orinoco ? h 'e t former ior cigars, and the lattpr f„. ~ plug tobacco. Greatest procuring pore seal trno „ m think, the surer way W to imnort'lf 6 ' 1 America, if not rec , t I fr0 ® T.ibacco seed, although so v« tains its vitality tot- a = length "f l- 8 * i ' e ' . found that some of fife & or «rfr * Mci germinated as freely a- that nf sear 3 However, this may be easil.- 0116 s,eirplacing a pinch on a hot Hove or shTel tf it pups or cracks It ,s safe to «.ow. I have found it much better to sow t>,A „ , • boxes than in beds. For tbTa r,,™ some 9 by 1 boards down the cut them into IS inch lengths Th«» . for the. ends of the boxes" Then saw feet palings across the middle, f ot L bottom and sides, and you can have number ot boxes IS. by 30 inches and inches in depth, which, with a little cW will last for years. Pill these with J) pulverised rich soil, three or fonr vjs prior to sowing the seed, and place a warm and sheltered aspect. Thii'»ni induce all weeds to make tb.eir appearanw wliou they can be removed without, daoeer of pulling up many of tiie dimintitke tobacco plants, which otherwise could uotk avoided. About the latter part of Jalv or : first week in August sow the seed; pj r5 t damp it very slightly, and mix it* With a little dry whiting, and rub it between tfce hands until each minute seed is coated with White. You will thus see it as it falls p D the soil, and be enabled to sprinkle it far more evenly. The surface of each of the bosea must be stirred to the depth of half an inch , then sow, and gently press with a, trowel or Smooth bit of board. Remember, the sail must be quite dry at the time of sowing else much of the seed will adhere to the article used for pressing. Place the boxes in the warmest position yon can commacp in a double row, lengthwise, thus forming! bed five feet in width and of any lennth required. Da.rn.ig the daytime in Ine weather they ought to be raised at one end by a bit of wood,, thus giving them full benefit of all sunheat. If there is any danger of frost or heavy rain, make a framewoik of sticks over them, and cover well: with leaves of the uikau palm, if available, : if not, old sacks or leafy branches will serve, but broad five feet Hobart paliogs would answer much better than either palm fronds Of sacks, &c., Of course, the seed mast be watered when required, and the very fines: rose should be used on the watering-pot, or much of it may be washed up oa the surface. When the leaves of the young pUtts are the size of a fourpenny bit, thin out to an inch, or slightly more, apart, thus leaving from 250 to 300 plants in each box. The : great advantage of sowing in boxes is that they caft be taken to the paddock intact, and, with a Small garden trowel, each plant may be raised with a ball of earth and nearly all its roots uninjured. If Seed beds are determined on, they ought to be made four feet in width, and any convenient length. Aboat May is the best time in dry weather. Dig well, and rake until every clod, stone, or toot is removed. Of eoarie, it is supposed that a warm and sheltered aspect will be chosen. By sowing, time all weeds -will be above ground, and cjn be easily removed; then proceed as if with boxtg, •watering When required, covering, &c. In this neighbourhood shell snails snd s.lug3 are very troublesome. As soon as any are observed take some of the worst tobacco leal, dry, and tub it between the hands un'il nearly as fine as bran. Sprinkle it over the boxes or beds after dark, and next mornipg you will find every slag or snail., oa which the least parti.Ce falls, lying powerless to_ move from the spot, aad nearly turned inside out. Tins of Plintisg best time to : plant ont is from the middle of October to the same time in Kovember. Have the ground harrowed as fine as possible, and rolled when dry- Q.hocse a dull, damp day for planting, and have the box's placed at convenient distances in the paddock, so tuat they can be wheeled about to the planters. Water the boxes well before removing the plants, and lift each one with a little garden trowel, so that the fibrous roots are as disturbed as possible, and a ball of earth adheres to each. If the soil is very rich, I have found five feet to be near enougn for the rows, and four and a half between the plants in the row. if the land ia medium, one foot less each way will not be too near. The number of bands employed must b* determined by the extent of land to : e planted, and all the ground should be gotw as soon as possible after making a commencement, for the earlier the crop is the more certain is success. Two long garden lines are necessary for four hand?. Make a marking, crotch as followsl 1 —Met two inch battens, five feet in length, place them on the ground, or floor, in the shape of the letter Y, so that the points areasiar apart as you intend the plants to be. firmly At the top, and put a bra?e across about the middle, and point the ends, marking crotch will now be in the Ebape o the letter A. With this a person can rapidly measure, off the correct distance each plant. A man sbonld follow wit small hoe, and make a hole about four incne deep at each indentation left hy the P° !n----of the marking crotch. Another no at sh° ; ' : follow the latter,, with bos, barrow, a trowel, laying plants in each hole, the • » : man places them in proper position, pres 5 the soil gently and firmly round, wi bruising or injuring the roots. Fours'men ought to plant in this way se - thousand per day, and, if properly showery weather, not one p<r °^ nt - , miss, but, in case of floods qr ' ... should always ba a good stock of p' l ® , , and above those required at tbe "R P ■ ing. Havana, or Cuba, tobacco nay .P One-third closer than Connecticut or ■ as it is of smaller growth than el i. wn i latter varieties. After the crop tion. ; got in,, it will require unceasing ffl until ready for market. In ten aj j after planting the tobacco will ' , rootedf but prior to this the row examined every day, in case the » has been at. work, cutting off » 1 _ plants at the surface, wheD, ot cou - < deficiencies must at once be replac; . seeing where this plague ha » de . st "L y oa r plant, you should poke about hands in the soil until you hud'> -tone times two or three will be ifocsre. root, from one to six or seven inch" f fr the surface. Time spent m is these peats is well spent. Early morei the best period of the day t° *j,esuil After your crop is well rooted, s . or between the rows «"ith a c ° _ ouC g scarifier, but don't go too ne _ or plant,..for fear cf disturbing the covering the leaves with par ft. tobac co: appear close to the stems o fvC3reremove them either by baud - nt lV fully with a hoe, at the san> , ***£ £s drawing a little soil round P cr op long as you can use horses am °°B of icdo so, but when there 13 ? ij e do!« jurin" the leaves; all work must De with = hoe. Weeds should destroyed, as no crop requires to cleaner than tpbapco; |To be continued.]