| Sowing | | | | that has seats for the croppers to sit on and |
| | | | seats just in front of these for the |
| Tobacco seeds are scattered onto the surface | | | | "stringers" to sit on. The croppers pull the |
| of the soil, as their germination is | | | | leaves off in handfuls, and pass these to the |
| activated by light. In colonial Virginia, | | | | "stringer", who loops twine around the |
| seedbeds were fertilized with wood ash or | | | | handfuls of tobacco and hangs them on a long |
| animal manure (frequently powdered horse | | | | wooden square pole. Traditionally, the |
| manure). Seedbeds were then covered with | | | | croppers, down in the dark and wet, with |
| branches to protect the young plants from | | | | their faces getting slapped by the huge |
| frost damage. These plants were left to grow | | | | tobacco leaves, were men, and the stringers |
| until around April. | | | | seated on the higher elevated seats were |
| | | | women. The harvester has places for 4 teams |
| In the nineteenth century, young plants came | | | | of workers: 8 people cropping and stringing, |
| under increasing attack from the flea beetle | | | | plus a packer who takes the heavy strung |
| (Epitrix cucumeris or Epitrix pubescens), | | | | poles of wet green tobacco from the stringers |
| causing destruction of half the United States | | | | and packs them onto the pallet section of the |
| tobacco crop in 1876. In the years afterward, | | | | harvester, plus a driver, making the total |
| many experiments were attempted and discussed | | | | crew of each harvester 10 people. |
| to control the flea beetle. By 1880 it was | | | | Interestingly, the outer seats are suspended |
| discovered that replacing the branches with a | | | | from the harvester - slung out over to fit |
| frame covered by thin fabric would | | | | into the aisles of tobacco. As these seats |
| effectively protect plants from the beetle. | | | | are suspended it is important to balance the |
| This practice spread until it became | | | | weight of the 2 outside teams (similar to a |
| ubiquitous in the 1890s. | | | | playground see-saw). Having too heavy or |
| | | | light a person in an unbalanced combination |
| Today, in the United States, unlike other | | | | often results in the harvester tipping over |
| countries, tobacco is often fertilized with | | | | especially when turning around at the end of |
| the mineral apatite in order to partially | | | | a lane. Water tanks are a common feature on |
| starve the plant for nitrogen, which changes | | | | the harvester due to heat, and danger of |
| the taste. This (together with the use of | | | | dehydration for the workers. Salt tablets |
| licorice and other additives) accounts for | | | | sometimes get used as well. |
| the different flavor of American cigarettes | | | | |
| from those available in other countries. | | | | Pests |
| There is, however, some suggestion that this | | | | |
| may have adverse health effects attributable | | | | Pests of tobacco include the moths Endoclita |
| to the polonium content of apatite. | | | | excrescens, Manduca sexta (the Tobacco |
| | | | hornworm), and Manduca quinquemaculata. Other |
| Transplanting | | | | Lepidoptera whose larvae use tobacco as a |
| | | | food plant include Angle Shades, Cabbage |
| After the plants have reached a certain | | | | Moth, Mouse Moth, Nutmeg Moth, Setaceous |
| height, they are transplanted into fields. | | | | Hebrew Character and Turnip Moth. The dry |
| This was originally done by making a | | | | tobacco leaves and cigarettes are sometimes |
| relatively large hole in the tilled earth | | | | used as food for the Cigarette Beetle |
| with a tobacco peg, then placing the small | | | | (Lasioderma serricorne). |
| plant in the hole. Various mechanical tobacco | | | | |
| planters were invented throughout the late | | | | Cut plants or pulled leaves are immediately |
| 19th and early 20th century to automate this | | | | transferred to tobacco barns (kiln houses), |
| process, making a hole, fertilizing it, and | | | | where they will be cured. Curing methods |
| guiding a plant into the hole with one | | | | varies with the type of tobacco grown, and |
| motion. | | | | tobacco barn design varies accordingly. |
| | | | Air-cured tobacco is hung in well-ventilated |
| Topping and suckering | | | | barns and allowed to dry over a period of |
| | | | weeks. Fire-cured tobacco is hung in large |
| Once the tobacco plants are growing well, | | | | barns where smoldering fires of hardwoods are |
| they will begin to produce shoots from the | | | | kept burning. Flue-cured tobacco was |
| joint of each leaf with the stalk. These | | | | originally strung onto tobacco sticks, which |
| secondary shoots — known as "suckers" | | | | were hung from tier-poles in curing barns |
| — are undesirable as they divert | | | | (Aus: kilns, also traditionally called |
| energy that could be directed into the | | | | Oasts). These barns have flues which run from |
| leaves. They are removed in a process known | | | | externally-fed fire boxes, heat-curing the |
| as "suckering" (sometimes spelled "succoring" | | | | tobacco without exposing it to smoke. |
| in older writing). Generally this is done by | | | | Traditional curing barns in the U.S. are |
| hand several times during the season. | | | | falling into disuse, as the trend toward more |
| Recently anti-suckering compounds have come | | | | efficient prefabricated metal "bulk bars", |
| into use. | | | | allows greater efficiency. Curing and |
| | | | subsequent aging allows for the slow |
| At a certain stage of maturity, the plant | | | | oxidation and degradation of carotenoids in |
| will produce a flower cluster from its tip, | | | | tobacco leaf. This produces certain compounds |
| as well as the tips of any suckers that | | | | in the tobacco leaves very similar and give a |
| remain on the plant. In order to divert more | | | | sweet hay, tea, rose oil, or fruity aromatic |
| energy into the leaves, the plant is "topped" | | | | flavor that contribute to the "smoothness" of |
| — the top is cut off. | | | | the smoke. Starch is converted to sugar which |
| | | | glycates protein and is oxidized into |
| Tobacco is harvested in one of two ways. In | | | | advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs), a |
| the oldest method, the entire plant is | | | | caramelization process that also adds flavor. |
| harvested at once by cutting off the stalk at | | | | Inhalation of these AGEs in tobacco smoke |
| the ground with a curved knife. In the | | | | contributes to atherosclerosis and cancer. |
| nineteenth century, bright tobacco began to | | | | |
| be harvested by pulling individual leaves off | | | | Unaged or low quality tobacco is often |
| the stalk as they ripened. The leaves ripen | | | | flavoured with these naturally occurring |
| from the ground upwards, so a field of | | | | compounds. Tobacco flavoring is a significant |
| tobacco may go through several "pullings" | | | | part of a multi-million dollar industry. |
| before the tobacco is entirely harvested, and | | | | |
| the stalks may be turned into the soil. | | | | The aging process continues for a period of |
| "Cropping" or "pulling" are terms for pulling | | | | months and often extends into the post-curing |
| leaves off tobacco. Leaves are cropped as | | | | process. |
| they ripen, from the bottom of the stalk up. | | | | |
| The first crop at the very bottom of the | | | | Post-cure processing |
| stalks are called "sand lugs", as they are | | | | |
| often against the ground and are coated with | | | | After tobacco is cured, it is moved from the |
| dirt splashed up when it rains. Sand lugs | | | | curing barn into a storage area for |
| weigh the most, and are most difficult to | | | | processing. If whole plants were cut, the |
| work with. Originally workers cropped the | | | | leaves are removed from the tobacco stalks in |
| tobacco and placed it on mule-pulled sleds. | | | | a process called stripping. For both cut and |
| Eventually tractors with wagons were used to | | | | pulled tobacco, the leaves are then sorted |
| transport leaves to the stringer, an | | | | into different grades. In colonial times, the |
| apparatus which uses twine to sew leaves onto | | | | tobacco was then "prized" into hogsheads for |
| a stick . | | | | transportation. In bright tobacco regions, |
| | | | prizing was replaced by stacking wrapped |
| Some farmers use "tobacco harvesters" - | | | | "hands" into loose piles to be sold at |
| basically a trailer pulled behind a tractor. | | | | auction. Today, most cured tobacco is baled |
| The harvester is a wheeled sled or trailer | | | | before sales under contract. |