COLIN

[COLIN]

Hi my name is colin i live in new zealand .this is going to be my first time at growing tobacco.the seed that i will be sowing is rose.shaman's rustica .kentucky burley .orinoco .maryland .monte calme yellow .and virginian gold.i intend to start germinating my seed next week. I am allowing 12 week's before i intend to plant outside .i have a ten acre lifestyle block witch i grase my horse's on .i have been vistiting your site for sometime now and have acquired lot off imformation .but there is so many more question's i need to ask and would appreciate your response regard's colin

 

[SmokesAhoy]

welcome to the site!

most questions already have answers if you look around, and the faq is great, read it if you havent already.

nice seed stock too, pretty much covers all the bases! How much of that 10 acres will you be planting?

 

[COLIN]

I was thinking about 1/4 acre 250 plant's

 

[johnlee1933]

I was thinking about 1/4 acre 250 plant's

WELCOME COLIN That's a pretty serious start. For that many plants you will need some serious space for color curing and drying. What is your climate like? Hot? Temperate? Chilly? how is your soil? What else do you grow?

John

 

[COLIN]

Hi john i have fourbay stable area which give's me about 20x30 square metre's for drying.we have a moderate climate night temp low as 10c and day temp high as 30c. Spring start's october autume april like to think i could start planting begining of november.get's quite windy in december thinking of planting four row's of corn around border.live right beside river and able to pump as much water as needed .have a lot of rabbit's and worried about transplanting

 

[Chicken]

im sure that many plants should give you a good start,,, on learning to grow baccy,

and you'll have plenty left to share

hows the weather there,? does it rain a lot like it does in england,?

 

[johnlee1933]

Hi john i have fourbay stable area which give's me about 20x30 square metre's for drying.we have a moderate climate night temp low as 10c and day temp high as 30c. Spring start's october autume april like to think i could start planting begining of november.get's quite windy in december thinking of planting four row's of corn around border.live right beside river and able to pump as much water as needed .have a lot of rabbit's and worried about transplanting

OK I just checked my map (and my meager knowledge) of NZ. What town are you near? Your stable sounds great. If it has a peaked roof with rafters and can be mostly closed from the wind it sounds ideal for color curing. Your rows of corn as a partial windbreak is a fine idea. You can always support the tobacco with stakes or wire. I grow Connecticut shade plants that grow tall and skinny. I use an overhead wire (2+m up) and tie each plant, bottom to the wire . The tying is easy and only has to be done once a year. That's a vertical string and you move the plant as it grows so the string is like a spiral stair around the stalk. Some of the guys here use stakes. For me that's a lot more work. What is your top wind velocity? What is your relative humidity range? Rabbits are not a problem for me. Do they eat young corn? If so you may have to fence. Some of the guys use the plastic fencing or landscape cloth that the construction industry uses for erosion control. Since you are the first Zealander here that I remember you can expect lots of interest and help. Are there any commercial tobacco growers in NZ? If so you may be able to get local help from them. What do you smoke? Cigs, cigars, pipe? If it's cigars I can send you some CT shade seed for cigar wrapper.

Good Luck,

John

 

[Chicken]

^^^^^

very good reply,

 

[Steve2md]

Welcome to the forum Colin. Ask away, and we'll do what we can to give you the best advice on the net!

 

[COLIN]

Hi chicken i know that sound a bit ambitious i am allowing for a fifty percent strike rate which would be 125 . But been prepared for 100 percent. Will be starting seed in propagator with heat pad and 2 fluore's.as for the wheather we can go 90 day's no rain and then we can get 200 ml in two week's. Colin

 

[wazzappenning]

your 50% loss will probably be at the seedling stage. plant twice as many seeds as you need and you should end up with what you want.

 

[COLIN]

Hi john; i live in the lower part of the north island 100 mile's northeast of wellington in a town called masterton.when i learn how to post picture's will be able to show you my stable and where i will be growing .the wire idea that you mentioned we used in commercial glasshouse for growing tomatoes.we have no commercial tobacco growers in nz and no other sites that's why have registed to ftt.mainly smoke cigs but will have a go at anything .have just purchased a laptop and not very computer savy i have abit off a problem spelling to and that's why it takes sometime to reply to your post's . Colin

 

[COLIN]

Thank's for welcome steve2md .and i am sure you advice will be much appreciated.colin

 

[johnlee1933]

Hi john; i live in the lower part of the north island 100 mile's northeast of wellington in a town called masterton.when i learn how to post picture's will be able to show you my stable and where i will be growing .the wire idea that you mentioned we used in commercial glasshouse for growing tomatoes.we have no commercial tobacco growers in nz and no other sites that's why have registed to ftt.mainly smoke cigs but will have a go at anything .have just purchased a laptop and not very computer savy i have abit off a problem spelling to and that's why it takes sometime to reply to your post's . Colin

Hey, It's like the man said "One letter at a time." What browser are you you using? Posting pics straight from this program will be pretty straight forward. At the top of the reply screen there are several little boxes that label themselves when you point to them. One says "Insert Image". Click that one it and have a go. Remember if your pics are too big they probably won't load. If you keep them about 600 X 800 you should have no problem. If your connection is a phone line then the process will be pretty slow.

John

 

[Brown Thumb]

Hi john; i live in the lower part of the north island 100 mile's northeast of wellington in a town called masterton.when i learn how to post picture's will be able to show you my stable and where i will be growing .the wire idea that you mentioned we used in commercial glasshouse for growing tomatoes.we have no commercial tobacco growers in nz and no other sites that's why have registed to ftt.mainly smoke cigs but will have a go at anything .have just purchased a laptop and not very computer savy i have abit off a problem spelling to and that's why it takes sometime to reply to your post's . Colin

Hell you should fit right in. I cannot spell either . But I am 11 and I type what my dad tells me since he cannot spells either really well.
Welcome Abord.
Jacob , Tom

 

[Tom_in_TN]

Colin, great to have you join in the fun, insane at times but still fun.

Your 250 plant grow-out seems a bit meager and small. With all that land it could be increased 10-fold with land to spare. Of course you will have little to no free time growing 250 plants and you will barely be able to make it to your day job in the mornings, assuming you are not retired.

If you are allowing 12 week's before planting outside that is a bit too long. Either plan on planting earlier or starting later. Allow about 8 weeks before planting outside. All joking aside about the number of plants to grow, consider germinating and planting in stages. For example, what date do you think will be the best, most optimal time to plant?

Look around the site for the optimal way to provide heat and light to your young, germinated seedlings. 8 weeks from germination to planting outside will be OK with the right amount of light and warmth for your seedlings.

Considering the area where you live, I know there are times when a system blows in from the Tasmanian Sea and the air can get a bit damp, cool and wet for many days across the entire island. So, be certain that you take steps to prevent your harvested tobacco leaf from molding as it is being cured and dried down if cool, damp weather moves in for a few days.

Overall, you have no worries, there are other people here that are eager to give you advice. You will do very well.

 

[johnlee1933]

Hi john; i live in the lower part of the north island 100 mile's northeast of wellington in a town called masterton.when i learn how to post picture's will be able to show you my stable and where i will be growing .the wire idea that you mentioned we used in commercial glasshouse for growing tomatoes.we have no commercial tobacco growers in nz and no other sites that's why have registed to ftt.mainly smoke cigs but will have a go at anything .have just purchased a laptop and not very computer savy i have abit off a problem spelling to and that's why it takes sometime to reply to your post's . Colin

OK I got Masterton on Google Earth and I can see two rivers joining just south of town. I assume you are north of the junction but don't know which river. Here in the states we hear that NZ is a large sheep producer. Are you in sheep country?

 

[Tom_in_TN]

John, I hear there are 4 times more sheep than people in NZ. They are everywhere.

 

[johnlee1933]

John, I hear there are 4 times more sheep than people in NZ. They are everywhere.

That's true in the US also.
The problem is that most of the sheep here are people. Ask any politician.

John

 

[Tom_in_TN]

Too funny!!! Could be a nugget of truth there.