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 TOBACCO FARMING
Tobacco farming started along the Sydenham river in the 1940s. This area is the extreme west end of the tobacco industry in southern Ontario. The reason tobacco grows so well in this area is because of the sandy soil. Sandy soil resists temperature change, protecting the tobacco crop better than dense soil.
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| These people are creating bundles of tobacco by hand. |
Although new technologies had made tobacco farming easier in the United States by the 1940s, in southwestern Ontario, tobacco cultivation was still largely done by hand. The seeds were sown in the fall or winter, and then covered with branches to protect them from the frost. In August or September, when the plant was large enough, the stalk would be cut, then split up the middle with a knife. The split stalks would be hung over a stick. When the sticks were full, they would be brought to a kiln to cure.
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