On my visit to the farm this morning I took some pictures. This barn holds around 10 acres of tobacco. The smell is pretty intense, but in a good way. Tobacco used to be a major part of Kentucky’s economy. Now it sometimes feels like people grow it more out of habit than anything else.
Burley tobacco, Shelby County, KY.
I recall the first time I saw the interior of a tobacco barn in Tennessee. It seems that the defining characteristic is rafters and beams everywhere. This was different than the barns I was used to seeing in Wisconsin.
It’s also worth remembering that tobacco is a very labor-intensive crap. Looking at the picture of all of those tobacco leaves hanging in the barn, I think about how much work went into taking those leaves by hand.Report
There’s still quite an Asian market for tobacco, so I’d guess–although obviously I’m not expert–that these farmers are doing it for more than habit.
Good pics, though. I’ve heard of these barns, but never looked up pictures of one.
The Bluegrass State…Hmm, it’s just come to me that my maps all must be wrong, and Boise is actually in Kentucky.Report
I worked on a tobacco farm for one day. I didn’t wear gloves. I didn’t go back.Report
It is an amazing amount of work to bring in a tobacco crop. Unsurprisingly, it’s mostly immigrant work these days. And we’ve had a bumper crop this year.Report
Amazing that it’s indoors. Too much rain to do it outside?
http://wccn.org/content/mountain-coffee-drying-coffee-photo-michael-kienitz
Here’s someone with coffee on a patio…Report
Yeah – it’s pretty wet here in October. We’ve had rain for the last three days.Report