Love and Perseverance from an Early Age

[El Presidente]

Love and Perserverance From an Early Age

http://www.telepinar.icrt.cu/ving/index.ph...&Itemid=141

"The main thing in this job is constancy, the love for what you do and the desire to obtain abundant crops with high quality," says Héctor Luis Prieto, awarded the title of Habano Man 2008. </H1>Tobacco is a plant which has dozens of operations to see green, large and beautiful leaves. And one must be very careful to prevent pests, be always vigilant.

"It is a family tradition that has remained, that's why since my childhood I have respect and love for this plant," expressed the 40 years-old producer, who lives in the municipality of San Juan y Martínez, of Pinar del Río province.

He tells that as a child he learned to love and care the fauna. Nowadays he plants tobacco in the both variants, sun and covered, modalities in which he gets more than the 40 percent of upper layers.

For two consecutive years Héctor Luis was selected the best farmer of the country, among those who plant less than 100 thousand tobacco offshoots, of which 55 000 are of the covered variety, says his father Francisco Prieto, very proudly.

He explains that they apply technological improvements that benefit the crop through exchanges with specialists from the Experimental Station of Tobacco in the municipality, which contributes to their investigations to increase yields.

"From traditional farmers, there is always something to learn, as I did from my father, but science is needed to move forward, more and better," states the interviewee.

In his farm, Quemado de Rubí, tobacco is priority; however, he also stands out in the urban agriculture movement since grains and vegetables, as well as pineapple and grapes are grown in his manors.

Hector Luis has a forest that shows the 46 plants described by José Martí in his campaign diary. Such a detail undoubtedly reaffirms how in this man, love and perseverance for the work began at an early age.