Cuba & Cigars

Production of Seedlings

The seedbed is the place where are produced the seedlings that later will be transplanted to other places for their development. The small size of tobacco seeds, among other aspects, justifies the fact that they don't be planted in a definitive place by means of the direct sowing.

The first operations that are carried out in the traditional seedbeds are those related to the working of the soil, which is carried out in a similar way to the one reported in the aspect Preparation of the land, this activity generally begins in the months of July and August. The tiny size of the seed (a gram of seeds contains between 10 and 12 thousand seeds) and therefore the impossibility of burying them implies that the preparation of the land should complete the following objectives:

- Absence of overgrowths and vegetable remains in decomposition.
- Depth between 25 and 30 centimeters.
- Surface of the land very fluffed without pulverizing it.
- Appropriate uniformity of the land.
- Minimum aggression to the environment.

In Cuba exist three fundamental technologies to produce tobacco seedlings, they are the seedbeds with technology, in which the base is organic material, the traditional seedbed that is the most common one in which as base is used the soil directly and finally since the decade of the 90s has been very frequent the production of seedlings in trays that is the aerial seedbed or the floating tray.

The seeds that are used to sow the seedbeds of tobacco are originated by the flowers of the plant; this production requires a very technical and careful work, because it is known that the certification of the seed plays an essential role mainly in the high quality of the dark tobacco produced in Pinar del Rio. The production of seeds is carried out by specialized companies and under the technical consultantship of the Experimental Station of tobacco of San Juan y Martínez. Next as a reference is offered a graphic exhibition about the inflorescence of tobacco, the mallets with the capsules that contain the seeds and finally you can appreciate the minuscule dimensions of the seeds of this important species.

Inflorescence of the tobacco plant	Seed Mallets on poles in the final phase of drying

Mallet of dry tobacco seeds, observe the capsules that contain them.	You can appreciate the tiny size of tobacco seeds, with the quantity that is shown, between 20 and 30 thousand seedlings could be produced.

Links & Sources:

• www.guerrillero.co.cu

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