Cosmic Crop 2018
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Balkis, try raised beds. I can't speak to how many feet that this particular plant needs, but I can get full heavy Virginia plants in just under 2.5' apart. With Raised beds you don't necessarily have to till. Just build you frames with 2x6 or 2x8's, put down some cardboard or newspapers to kill the grass, and then put the dirt on top of that. The roots are kept in loose soils, and if you staggered tall and short tobacco plants, you might even get them to do well in under 2' intervals.
I'll be interested to hear what Jitterbugdude says. Do you use raised beds, Jitter?
I'll be interested to hear what Jitterbugdude says. Do you use raised beds, Jitter?
Cosmic, I don't do raised beds. I just hook up a rototiller to my tractor and till away! I did no-till for a couple of years but my plants did not thrive. I think it was because I mulched them heavily when I planted them and the mulch acted as an insulator, keeping to soil too moist. The tractor is fun.. my wife thinks I'm "working" when I use it.
As for Prilep. You should be able to plant them 6 inches apart. Most of my Turkish are planted 6 inches apart in a staggered double row (6 inches apart). Prilep grows about 30 inches tall.
I found this little blurb..
" Originally Posted by Dimitrieski M, Miceska G: A New and More Productive Variety of Prilep Tobacco. SECOND BALKAN CONFERENCE ON BIOLOGY. Plovdiv (2010).
...transplanted at 45 cm spacing between rows and 15 cm within the row. [~18" x 6"]
Plants are ellipsoid-conic in shape, with height average of 65-75 cm [25.6-29.5"], depending on conditions of growing and applied cultural practices. The stalk is relatively thin and strong. Average leaf number of leaves is 52 and they are uniformly distributed on the stem. Average size is in the limits of 18 - 22 cm [7-8.7"] for the largest leaf, 16-18 cm [6.3-7"] for the middle and 8 - 10 [3.1-3.9"] for the top leaves. Inflorescence is relatively small, moderately to tightly condensed, semi-oval in shape."
As for Prilep. You should be able to plant them 6 inches apart. Most of my Turkish are planted 6 inches apart in a staggered double row (6 inches apart). Prilep grows about 30 inches tall.
I found this little blurb..
" Originally Posted by Dimitrieski M, Miceska G: A New and More Productive Variety of Prilep Tobacco. SECOND BALKAN CONFERENCE ON BIOLOGY. Plovdiv (2010).
...transplanted at 45 cm spacing between rows and 15 cm within the row. [~18" x 6"]
Plants are ellipsoid-conic in shape, with height average of 65-75 cm [25.6-29.5"], depending on conditions of growing and applied cultural practices. The stalk is relatively thin and strong. Average leaf number of leaves is 52 and they are uniformly distributed on the stem. Average size is in the limits of 18 - 22 cm [7-8.7"] for the largest leaf, 16-18 cm [6.3-7"] for the middle and 8 - 10 [3.1-3.9"] for the top leaves. Inflorescence is relatively small, moderately to tightly condensed, semi-oval in shape."
Ha ha, I know exactly what you mean about the tractor, but I rarely ever bring it to the house, and it takes forever to get it from the farm to the house, and I end up with hundreds of angry drivers behind me both ways, ha ha.
The plants are about three inches across now and still require me to keep them watered in.
Here is a small semois burley...
And, here is the semois bed, which I put next to the creek.
Here is a small semois burley...
And, here is the semois bed, which I put next to the creek.
Processed paper has a lot of chemicals in it. Aren't you concerned about chemicals contaminating the soil? Even a small amount?
I'm with you on that. I had a small 10x30 backyard garden that I switched to five 4x8 18" raised beds last year. I used untreated red cedar and built and filled them myself. A lot of work but man, putting the garden out this year was 10x easier than tilling and then weeding all summer. And at 18", the rabbits can't get in them, or at least they can't see that high to know there's something there.
I avoid putting glossy paper and some color print materials in the compost. 90% of all printing is inkjet these days, with carbon being the colorant. Very little lead based or heavy metals in the inks. Ultimately, it is just cellulose that breaks down the nitrogen to usable components. So, no, I don't worry. I have more rabbit manure than anything else in my beds, since we raise meat rabbits.
This bed in particular is very low in soil. It is next to the creek, so I wanted the plants to get its water mostly from the ground. But, each year, as I add more wheelbarrows of compost, the level of dirt will rise.
I finally have the flue curing barn (thing) finished. I just need to paint it now. The kiln area is 4'x2'x6', and I will be adding more lines across it to hold more levels of tobacco. It is double insulated to about R20, with insulation, insulation board, and 2' lumber. It is heated with two large crock pots set on high, and it has been running at about 135F @ 70% humidity. I would rather push it to 170F, but I may need to add one more crock pot. I bought a plug and play thermostat, but I have yet to figure out how to program it. I spent two days fiddling with it to get it out of that nonsense celcius, but I have yet to get beyond that.
I lost the first round of leave turning to sand lugs, because I was in the hospital and didn't get this thing completed on time. But, they are still pretty tasty. Here are the first set of hands, and each day, I will get a new set to add.
Mrs. Cosmic keeps pushing me to get it painted, but I am weary of painting it with tobacco hanging in it, so that may have to wait till I get everything socialized with this year's crop.
Anyways, so begins the fun part. Cooking the tobacco.
BTW, the Cherry Red Brightleaf lugs smoke amazing, very sweet and subtly fruity, just as lugs. I look forward to smoking this in a few years.
I lost the first round of leave turning to sand lugs, because I was in the hospital and didn't get this thing completed on time. But, they are still pretty tasty. Here are the first set of hands, and each day, I will get a new set to add.
Mrs. Cosmic keeps pushing me to get it painted, but I am weary of painting it with tobacco hanging in it, so that may have to wait till I get everything socialized with this year's crop.
Anyways, so begins the fun part. Cooking the tobacco.
BTW, the Cherry Red Brightleaf lugs smoke amazing, very sweet and subtly fruity, just as lugs. I look forward to smoking this in a few years.
Brilliant use of the crock pots as both heaters and humidifiers! Now get one of those WiFi grill thermometers and you can monitor the temp from your phone in the house!
Or, better yet....
Or, better yet....
That’s a great idea! Thanks! Does it let you control the heat via your phone? That would make life easier.
Congrats on getting your thing built and loaded! I can see black stain with or without white trim....
I have a remote weather monitor in it now, and it stays a constant 130F at 70% humidity. It makes checking the status without opening the barn much easier. Opening it lets all of the heat and humidity out.
I probably should have made it twice as large as it is, because it is already at maximum capacity, with only half of the Virginias harvested. Crap!!
I will paint the outside to Mrs. Cosmic's specs, which is to match the house, like the shed, barn, studio, and the greenhouse, which is a purple-tinted grey, with a green trim. Sigh, I know... she picked the colors. But, I will wait till all is cured before painting, with some sort of mildew resistant paint. But, I will consider just waxing the inside boards, to keep it non-toxic.
I probably should have made it twice as large as it is, because it is already at maximum capacity, with only half of the Virginias harvested. Crap!!
I will paint the outside to Mrs. Cosmic's specs, which is to match the house, like the shed, barn, studio, and the greenhouse, which is a purple-tinted grey, with a green trim. Sigh, I know... she picked the colors. But, I will wait till all is cured before painting, with some sort of mildew resistant paint. But, I will consider just waxing the inside boards, to keep it non-toxic.
I've just unloaded the first batch of flue cured Virginias from the kiln, and steamed them to be more pliable. I have put them in bags to put them in the barn to stay till next year, or the next.
Then I harvested the next batch of ripe leaves. Here are the Virginia Belles left all half-stripped in the bed.
And, here is the kiln all loaded up again. I have been loading the semois into the flue curing kiln also. I know that it technically a cigar leaf burley, but I was curious as to what the heat and humidity would do to it.
Again, I wish I had of built the kiln twice as large as I did. I really didn't leave myself any room to grow.
So, if you are thinking about building your own, go ahead and build it bigger than you think it should be.
Then I harvested the next batch of ripe leaves. Here are the Virginia Belles left all half-stripped in the bed.
And, here is the kiln all loaded up again. I have been loading the semois into the flue curing kiln also. I know that it technically a cigar leaf burley, but I was curious as to what the heat and humidity would do to it.
Again, I wish I had of built the kiln twice as large as I did. I really didn't leave myself any room to grow.
So, if you are thinking about building your own, go ahead and build it bigger than you think it should be.
Cosmic,
For remote temperature control, you might want to consider an Anova Sous Vide cooker. It's a device that heats and circulates water to a very precise temp. There are 2 models, a Bluetooth only one, and a Wifi one- which you need depends on how far away your kiln is. With the Anova App, you can precisely control the temperature of the water remotely.
I use mine for cooking food (duh), and I have to keep a lid on the container, since it evaporates water off, especially when doing pulled pork for 24-48 hours... But I'd think that this is exactly what you would want to allow for humidity. If it were to get too humid, I'd imagine you could adjust the lid of your water container to regulate the water vapor.
For remote temperature control, you might want to consider an Anova Sous Vide cooker. It's a device that heats and circulates water to a very precise temp. There are 2 models, a Bluetooth only one, and a Wifi one- which you need depends on how far away your kiln is. With the Anova App, you can precisely control the temperature of the water remotely.
I use mine for cooking food (duh), and I have to keep a lid on the container, since it evaporates water off, especially when doing pulled pork for 24-48 hours... But I'd think that this is exactly what you would want to allow for humidity. If it were to get too humid, I'd imagine you could adjust the lid of your water container to regulate the water vapor.
Cosmic, this is really cool what you're doing. My OCD is firing up a little and just did a bit of internet research on growing tobacco in Minnesota. It definitely can be done. I'm thinking a little Minnesota grown, Virginia bright leaf would be a lot of fun. I've got the land and a pole barn to rig up. To hell with tomatoes, the grocery store has those. Keep us updated on your progress.
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