Tobacco Harvest

While most people got to go to the beach or just enjoy themselves on Labor Day, I went with my brother in law to the Wiggins Farm in Lenoir County to witness the harvesting of tobacco and all the steps that go into preparing it for market. I thought it was an interesting topic, but the guys working the harvest thought it was just work. The opportunity to shoot the harvest fell in my lap and I had only a film camera with me, so some of the shots are a bit grainy.

The top picture is of Mariana feeding tobacco straight from the field into crates for curing. The next picture is of the line the tobacco goes through to be sorted and cleaned. The final picture is of 800-pound bales of tobacco, harvested, cured, sorted, cleaned, compressed and ready to go to auction.