Growing Tobacco for Nasal Snuff?

[DICE]

Just started a tobacco grow, we are planning on 2 crops for the 2013 growing season. First crop is going to be n. tabacum va309 and n. rustica rapa nui (easter island strain). Second crop will be n. tabacum little dutch and n. rustica kessu var. Were starting as an indoor grow under 210 watts of metal halide and hps to get an early start on the growing season. As of today we have 10 rapa nui sprouted and no virginia up yet. Our plan is to use the virginia as our base and the rustica to boost the nicotine content for a nice potent blend. We want to transplant to an outdoor 4x8 bed around March. Another option we have tossed around is doing a full indoor grow under a few hundred watts of grow lights. Our only concern with an indoor grow is diminished nicotine content but avoiding some of the outdoor pests might make it worth it in the end. We are growing in Southern California. Since we are going into this with no prior knowledge we have a few questions. What are the best tobacco varieties for nasal snuff and would would you recommend indoor or outdoor grow. Any recommendations you could offer would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance
Dice

 

[BarG]

Welcome Dice, That sounds like an interesting grow. Keep us apprised how it turns out .

 

[deluxestogie]

Indoor Growing vs Outdoor Growing -- Features List

[FONT=Courier New]
FEATURE                      INDOOR                      OUTDOOR
1. Grow Medium              add-on                       provided
2. Photons                  add-on                       provided
3. Water                    add-on                       provided
4. Nutrients                add-on                       provided
5. Relative Cost            high                          low[/FONT]

Bob

 

[leverhead]

I just started growing outside last year. When can I expect the cost of relatives to go down?

 

[johnlee1933]

I just started growing outside last year. When can I expect the cost of relatives to go down?

It's relative my Dear Watson, relative. -- John

 

[BarG]

Indoor Growing vs Outdoor Growing -- Features List

[FONT=Courier New]
FEATURE                      INDOOR                      OUTDOOR
1. Grow Medium              add-on                       provided
2. Photons                  add-on                       provided
3. Water                    add-on                       provided
4. Nutrients                add-on                       provided
5. Relative Cost            high                          low[/FONT]

Bob

Ha ha heh, you forgot the containers. You probabaly didnt.

 

[indianjoe]

Dice,
like pointed out above, few comparisons to getting that grow outside. Welcome.

 

[Jitterbugdude]

Dice, I'm not sure what varieties would be good for snuff. What are the characteristics of a good snuff? strong nicotine? mild?
I grew VA309 this past year and tried it in a pipe, as chewing tobacco and in the wife's cigarettes. It sucked in all cases. It was too strong. The "problem" that you'll have by asking what variety is best is that everyone's tastes/desires are different. I like to make chew, not too sure how closely that would be related to snuff. Nice tobaccos for chew are Yellow Twist Bud, Air cured Perique and Yellow Orinoco. Typically dark tobaccos are used for chew, so maybe they are also used for snuff?

Randy B

 

[Michibacy]

I'm really interested in this thread, I was just looking around on the forums yesterday morning looking for a nasal snuff thread. I'm going to work on processing some here in the next few weeks. I would imagine a light flavor, medium nicotine tobacco would be best, this would allow you to apply a scent more easily.

Mostly likely get the tobacco as dry as possible. Put in a coffee grinder or one of those personal smoothie makers (~$20 at Walmart/Fred Meijer/Wallgreens) I would imagine you could even use stems as well if you make sure to sift the powder to remove large chunks.

After grinding to your desired consistency, apply a scented oil (food grade) or flavoring of your choice. Probably make a water based slurry and apply lightly via a misting bottle, multiple times.

I can forsee the tobacco getting clumpy after misting it, so let it dry and toss it in the processor for a quick second to pulverize it once again.

 

[istanbulin]

Formerly nasal snuffs were produced here (lower amount). I used it once app. about 30 years ago. It looks like a fine tobacco dust without flavoring. I know that N. Rustica is generally preferred for producing nasal snuff but when it comes to Turkish tobaccos Hasankeyf (a N. Rustica variety derived from Russian Mahorka), Tombac and Trabzon are used, especially (as said) Trabzon is very suitable for nasal snuff production (because it's more flavorful and a little bit fragrant (when kilned) than the other two). The common point of these three variety is very high nicotine content (app. % 3 to 4). So I can say the tobacco used for making nasal snuff should be stronger in nicotine.

 

[Michibacy]

Istanbulin, thanks for that information. I would imagine my Green Brior would fit that bill well, it's a burley but it seemed to be to be light on flavor but high in nicotine content.

 

[deluxestogie]

Another thought with regard to snuff is that some manufacturers utilize a high proportion of well-cured, well-dried stems. Nicotine content in stems is usually lower that the content of the lamina.

Bob

 

[Michibacy]

Bob, I concur with that, I read a little bit ago that some people use the dried stems. I've got a grocery bag full I might have to use!

 

[Michibacy]

I ground up my stems into a medium-fine powder. I had Green Brior, Silk Leaf and Havana 142 stems. I sifted out what stuff wouldn't grind down and applied almond extract (alcohol base) to the powder and mixed it in well for about 10 minutes to make a slightly moist compound. It dried a bit but is still decently moist. Snuffs well, hardly any stinging and pleasant floral smell.

Surprising, but it worked out quite well.

By the way, 1 grocery bag mostly filled made that 100 gram package in the picture.

 

[johnlee1933]

Another thought with regard to snuff is that some manufacturers utilize a high proportion of well-cured, well-dried stems. Nicotine content in stems is usually lower that the content of the lamina.Bob

I have been doing that for a couple of years. I don't use snuff but a buddy does and he likes it. He says he can notice a difference some times. Since stems and all my scrap goes this road I'm not surprised...He does not snuff it. He puts a pinch inside his lip. -- John

 

[DICE]

Thank you for all the replies so far! I checked on the sprouting tray just now and there are 11 Rapa Nui and 9 Virginia sprouted. I am still a bit curious what types of seeds experienced growers use when the sole purpose of growing is to make nasal snuff. Since me and my buddy are new to growing and making our own snuff we are just kind of flying blind on what seeds to try. I was just taking a guess that by mixing 50/50 Nicotiana Rustica~Rapa Nui (for nicotine content) with a Nicotiana Tabacum~VA 309 would be a good starting point.

Michibacy, that is very cool that you made some snuff with the stems! As far as the flavoring I know when me and my buddy have experimented, we just put a couple drops of essential oils onto a little piece of a paper towel. Then we cover the snuff and the essential oiled paper towel with a tupperware tub or something big enough to set over both. Just be sure not to let the snuff actually touch the essential oils, the snuff will absorb the smell very quickly. You can let it sit however long until the smell is the strength you want. When we did a small amount with lemon essential oil, it sat for a couple hours and it turned out very strong (in a good way)

 

[Michibacy]

My snuff was rather dry as I stated before. The water in the almond extract has kept the humidity of this snuff at a good level. When using it, it doesn't sting like commercial snuff. You taste it after about 5 minutes (when your sinuses begin to try) but it's not over powering.

 

[SmokesAhoy]

Any of the dark Virginia's should work too for nicotine, they always seemed the highest to me without sacrificing yield. On the topic of nicotine, it's a function of the genes as well as the nitrogen uptake, so be sure they get a lot of n.

 

[Michibacy]

I received a sample of Snuff from Johnlee1933, the description of which as follows:

Smell: Fantastic, very mild but has a nice aged tobacco smell

Grind: A little bit course, but that's just my personal preference. If it was being used for oral intake, I would imagine it to be just fine. (He is thinking about straining it)

Nicotine: Took about 20 minutes to hit me, but when it did, I sure felt it. Nothing terribly overpowering, but I was left sitting there with a slow heart rate (he is using his standard cigarette blends' midribs currently, nicotine content will change depending on what strains he has next)

I would definitely suggest it to other users. Oral would be good with a top flavoring of some sort, nasal just needs to be finer.

 

[johnlee1933]

I received a sample of Snuff from Johnlee1933, the description of which as follows:

Smell: Fantastic, very mild but has a nice aged tobacco smell

Grind: A little bit course, but that's just my personal preference. If it was being used for oral intake, I would imagine it to be just fine. (He is thinking about straining it)

Nicotine: Took about 20 minutes to hit me, but when it did, I sure felt it. Nothing terribly overpowering, but I was left sitting there with a slow heart rate (he is using his standard cigarette blends' midribs currently, nicotine content will change depending on what strains he has next)

I would definitely suggest it to other users. Oral would be good with a top flavoring of some sort, nasal just needs to be finer.

I can tell anyone interested how to make it for themselves or friends. -- J