Tobacco

[FirestarterKY]

Is anyone here wise to starting your own tobacco seed?
I got a 1,000 yr old seed and sprinkled them and have 1/2 inch high starts now.
But, I've tried this before, and could never get my plants
up good to about 5 inches (or more) to be strong enough to plant outside.
I dont want to use chemical of any kind.

Also, I hear of a thing you can pour on your garden plants.....take horse poop and put it in a bucket and fill that with water and just ladle out some on the ground around plants?

Back to tobacco....
I got bigger greenhouse growing containers for when I seperate my tobacco seedlings and give them a place of their own to grow and some good planting/starting soil.
I asked an old tobacco farmer about how to start....he buys his ready to go into the ground as most do now I think and all he said, was, get egg cartons and a window sill.
Oh, big help!
LOL!

Thanks for any help you all can offer!

Karen

[MooseToo]

them's some OLD seeds you got there -

[Florida_boy]

Karen,
Are you growing for market or just for your own use? Just curious, I was wondering what the market is like now.

thanks,

[hangfire]

Tobacco isn't all that hard. Those little peat pot things available at walmart work well. Use a miracle grow or sams choice type fertilizer in your water, and put it on the plants dilute concentration. Horn worms great big green suckers eat on the plants, so be aware of that. They will munch your plants up pretty good if your not careful. I air dry mine in a large shed, but as I don't smoke not sure how well it burns (as there arent nitrates added to even out the burning). www.coffinnails.com or something pretty close to that has a lot of info on growing tobacco.

[hangfire]

oh, and yes, starting on a warm sunny windowsill works very well. Dont put in the ground until not only frost is past, but temp wont dip below 50 degrees or so at night

[FirestarterKY]

Thanks!
I did just that....got miracle grow and did start them in those small starter pods, that worked well.
So far so good.
I transplanted them in the larger now, about 5 or 6 per bigger pot.
They arent dieing, but arent growing jsut a lot yet either.
Okay.....ya, I learned my lesson last year when I put them out way way too young.
I'm noticing I have to baby them, really.

Hangfire.....if I walk through my tobacco every day and look for and pull off those worms, should I be okay?
I figure I'll toss them out to my chickens to eat....or go fishing with them? LOL!

Hey Florida Boy....no, not commercial, though I bet I coudl make a killing , say, at a pow wow or something with the tobacco.
It's for personal use and giving away.
My hubby is Indian.
Has his own Prayer Pipe and wants ceremonial good traditional tobacco.
I'm not Indian, not one who "has 1/8 cherokee blood" or anything but I enjoy helping the Indians out when I can.
An old Indian Elder gave me these seeds.
I was also given a piece of Grandfather wood, which is lightening struck wood that's as old as the seeds, apparently the seeds and the wood have been together for a long time and have to stay together.
I had to put a small piece of the wood in each growing container before the seeds went in.
I think their beliefs are cool and enjoy participating in them.
Oh my god!
Two deer are fighting!!!!
Up on their hind legs throwing punches!
LOL! Never seen that before!!!
I have a nice big picture window behind my pc screen....get to see a lot while punchin keys.

Ya....it's still getting intot he 40's a bit at night here.
I'll wait till about mid May or later to put them out.

Take care!!!!!!



Thanks again!

[hangfire]

Firestarter

Yeah, pull those worms off as quick as you see them, otherwise a lot of the tobacco will go down their gullet. Other bugs and pests will sample the tobacco too, but for most of them, I think it will indeed kill them. Once your plants are bigger then say a silver dollar your pretty much out of the woods. Prior to that, I'd find some of my plants munched to the point that they couldn't recover. Once the weather gets nice and hot the plants will grow very quickly and so can grow faster then the bugs eat on them, even the stupid hornworm. The problem with the hornworm is that the nicotine doesnt seem to kill that particular pest for some reason.

I havent decided if i want to grow tobacco this year. So many things going on. I'll probably sprinkle some seeds and see what happens, but I wont do the whole windowsill routine.

Hangfire

[FirestarterKY]

Thanks!
Ya...I set them out for a few hours yesterday and they seem to finally be growing!
Too, maybe I'll sprinkle some seed outdoors when it really warms up and see how that goes too.
Ya, if you're talking about those green worms....I really dislike them!
They are good at hiding!
Cant find them...so I just look for eaten areas of plants and then *look, and lo and behold, there they are!
Not much grosses me out, but these green worms are really nasty!
Gonna work the garden today, you all have a good one!
When my pants get old and ready to harvest I'll ask about seed gathering off them.
Thanks again!

[cubcadet]

Hey Firestarter,
I wonder how that old tobbackee tastes in a pipe? I`d be willing to trade you some other kind of seed for a few of those tobbackee seeds.

[FirestarterKY]

You gotta deal!
I have no idea how it tastes.
I just know it's a very old seed.
The tobacco is about 2-3 inches high now!
SHEW!
We did it!
I have about 30 plants.
Too..the old tobacco farmer was out with all his tobacco plants getting ready to set them.....
I stopped and just as he had promised he gave me 5
plants for free!
I put them out and they were pretty wilty for the first 2 days but look better.
Glad I have those 5 to experement with.....looks like something ate half a leaf off all of them....wonder what it was?
No telling I guess.

Cubcadet....dont make them like they use to that's for sure.
We bought a new one 2 yrs ago and already I'm going to have to sand and rustoleum....

When I gather seeds this year I'll put back some for you!
Will I want to keep the tops on half the tobacco or all or just 4-5?

The tobacco went in their individual pots at 2-3 inches tall.
I've never gotten this far before.
Ya'll have a great day!
Happy Memorial Day!

[FirestarterKY]

Hi Sandycane!
Yup, they are still doing great, outside hardening for the past few days, they will go into the soil this weekend, in full sun.
Yes!
It's still a long way from growing and collecting seed, so dont want to promise anything yet.
But, yes I would be willing to do some trading.
The five I put in two weeks ago are still doing great.

Have a good one!!!!

WHen the tomatoes grow long and slinky, I just plant the whole long stem..it gives the plant so much more root base.
Instead of digging just a hole I scoop out a longated trench, so to speak, then I lay the whole stem in and cover.

[bookwormom]

I do it the same way with gangly tomato plants, works great.. I am wondering if I could buy a few tobacco plants someplace. does anybody know if there are places that sell tobacco plants? I promised my brother I would as he wants to make homemade snuff..

[FirestarterKY]

Do you know or know of someone aroudn you that grows tobacco?
If you do, just do what I did and drop in, introduce, make a new friend :) and ask.
They would have told me where to buy them, but they just gave me some of theirs.
It may not be too late.....aroudn here in KY tobacco is still just going in, but, it's nearing the end of planting season so you might want to put a rush in.
Call your local farm extention ask where the tobacco farmers go to get their tobacco.
Hope you find some!

Karen

[cubcadet]

Hey FirestarterKY
I lost track of the thread. I`d still be interested in some tobakkee seed. I have some very good seed, about 80% viable, of Roma Tomato. They`re a pear tomato, good for anything, mainly sauce, I think. I can send you alot of them. Still have them tobakkee seeds? Thanks

cub