THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Tobacco

Lisa Karen Miller

          On first seeing his master smoking a pipe, Sir Walter Raleigh’s servant chucked a bucket of water over him, thinking he was on fire.

          Watch Bob Newhart’s classic “Tobacco Sketch” on YouTube to see Raleigh trying to explain to his bosses back in England that the precious treasure he is bringing them is a leaf – meant to be burned.

            Burley is the type of Nicotiana tabacum mostly grown in Kentucky for smoking.  Many don’t realize it has a blossom, because the plant has to be topped to prevent wasting energy on flowering.  Topping also concentrates the narcotic and noxious substances in the leaf.

          Various species of Nicotiana are sold as ornamentals, commonly called Flowering Tobacco. Evening bloomers, they attract hawkmoths and other night pollinators. 

          An early folklorist reported that the Native American “…secures passage across the Lake Superior, or down the Mississippi, by gifts of precious tobacco, which he wafts to the great spirit of the Flood on the bosom of its waters.”

         They also applied the wet leaf to cuts, bites, and problem skin.  I remember being administered a wad of wet tobacco on my bee stings when I was a child. It really did take away the pain and swelling (it has both a numbing and shrinking effect) and helped to draw out the stinger.

          Because tobacco leaches nitrogen from the soil, the 1×1 sticks on which the leaves are cured are nitrogen rich.  They are an excellent way to fertilize your lawn if you can find a farmer willing to lend you some. I remember seeing lawns covered with them every spring; after a few good rains, the sticks were taken up, and the grass was emerald green.

          North and South American tribes smoked the leaf in ceremonies to offer sacred incense to their gods.  By means of tobacco smoke, they entered into “supernatural ecstasy.” It was not an everyday practice. White men, enjoying the sensation, became hooked on it before they realized there was such a thing as addiction.

          Tobacco is now the largest contributor to health problems in America.

          The largest.

          The poisonous alkaloid nicotine causes nausea, cardiac irregularities, impaired fetal development, emphysema, and lung and other cancers.

          Knowing this, however, doesn’t make it any easier to kick.  A doctor once told me nicotine is more addictive than heroin. As a former smoker, I can quite believe it. 

          For help to quit smoking, contact the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Quit Now program at 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669).  They offer free coaching, educational materials, and referrals to local resources.

          Be healthy.  There’s ecstasy to be found elsewhere.

© Copyright 2023 Lisa Karen Miller