The Blackfoot and Crow, nomadic tribes of the western Plains who raised no food crops, cultivated small patches of tobacco for ceremonial use. The ground was cleared of weeds and grass, and the seed planted in holes about two inches deep, made with a pointed stick. The gardens were weeded from time to time, but do not seem to have been regularly cultivated. In both tribes tobacco culture was attended by elaborate ceremonies. Among the Crow it was in the hands of a society which also played an important part in the social life of the tribe. The right to plant tobacco was considered a special privilege which could be obtained only through a revelation from some supernatural being or through adoption by a person who had received such a revelation. The adopted person could, in turn, adopt others. Any person might receive such a revelation, and the society was composed of a number of divisions or chapters which derived their right to plant from different revelations and differed in their songs and in details of their ceremonies. Within the chapter there were certain rights, such as that of mixing seed before planting, which could only be acquired by purchase. Both men and women were eligible to membership, and the society held assemblages for dancing throughout the year. Some of the tribes west of the Rocky Mountains also cultivated tobacco, although there is little information on their methods. On the Columbia River and in northern California a stump or fallen log was burned, and the tobacco seed scattered in the ashes.