Abstract: A system for minimizing manual handling of tobacco leaves for bulk cure comprises a container for use in forced air curing of tobacco in bulk, a kiln having a floor arrangement to effect better control of air flow in achieving forced air cure in such containers and apparatus to facilitate handling of containers from the field, placement in and removal from a kiln. The bulk cure container sidewalls have a plurality of projections to define internally of the container a plurality of obstructions which impede the flow of air along container sidewall interior filled with tobacco in bulk form. The kiln has a floor arrangement which provides a plurality of cavities adapted to sealingly engage container bottoms. The apparatus for handling the containers includes a mobile frame supporting a pair of spaced-apart rails. Such rails cooperate with corresponding pairs of rails in kiln so as to be interconnectable therewith.

Abstract: A tobacco harvester comprises a pair of counter rotating defoliators overlying a pair of opposing spaced apart lateral transfer conveyors for conveying picked leaves outwardly from under the defoliators. A pair of belts are driven in opposite directions, portions of which oppose and are spaced apart from one another along opposing portions of the pair of lateral conveyors. The belt spacing is such to allow tobacco plant stalks to pass therebetween as opposing belt portions engage and support tobacco plant stalks. Side conveyors receive picked leaves from the pair of lateral transfer conveyors. The speed drives are arranged so that the rotary speed of the rotating defoliators, the conveying speed of the lateral conveyors, the conveying speed of the side conveyors and the linear speed of the belts are independently adjustable of one another. A pair of speed indicators may be provided to visually indicate the respective speeds of the picking rate of the defoliators and the ground speed of the harvester.