14 Glorious Photos Of Maryland's Traditional Fall Tobacco Harvest

A tobacco leaf lies on the soil after plants are harvested on the farm in September. Tobacco has been grown on the Lewis Farm for more than 60 years and still requires being harvested by hand. Starting next month, the remaining tobacco growers in the U.S. will be forced to compete in the open market and will stop getting buyout checks from cigarette makers to compensate them for surrendering their quotas.

Farmworker Tracy Creek cuts off tobacco leaves so they can be hung and dried at the Lewis Farm. Most farms in Maryland have stopped growing tobacco due to the state's buyout program.

Homemade axes are used to cut tobacco on the farm.

Farmworker James Brown cuts off tobacco leaves so they can be hung and dried in a barn.

Creek spears tobacco leaves onto a stick.

Farmworkers take a break from cutting tobacco leaves.

Farmworker Hank Jefferson loads tobacco leaves onto a trailer before being hung to dry.

More farmworkers load tobacco leaves onto a trailer.

Farmer S.L. Brady drives a tractor pulling a trailer full of tobacco leaves.

Farmworker Gladys Lake leans againt a stack of tobacco leaves as they are driven to a barn.

Tobacco leaves that have been loaded onto a trailer.

Farmworkers ride on a trailer after loading it with harvested tobacco leaves.

Lake unloading a trailer full of tobacco leaves.

Lake about to hang the tobacco leaves up to dry.