DonH's 2014 Grow Log

[DonH]

A tiller works great on new sod. I reccomend more than 1 time up to 3 or 4 though so renting would be uneconomical.

Well, I'd like to buy one anyway. So you're talking about a decent sized tiller that you push instead of some attachment for a tractor, correct?

 

[Jitterbugdude]

If you have the money get a tractor that you can hook a tiller to the PTO. If not, get a roto tiller but make sure it is rear tine, not a front tine tiller or it'll beat you to death. Of course you could always try hooking the wife up to a 2 bottom plow..

 

[DonH]

If you have the money get a tractor that you can hook a tiller to the PTO. If not, get a roto tiller but make sure it is rear tine, not a front tine tiller or it'll beat you to death. Of course you could always try hooking the wife up to a 2 bottom plow..

LOL. She would do it for vegetables, but not for tobacco. She's one of those ex-smokers who thinks it's evil.

And thanks for the tip on the tillers. I looked a bit online, and the rear tine ones looked the best. I borrowed my neighbor's front tine one last year to chew up the clover cover crop I planted and it was a PIA. It was hard to push and the tines kept getting clogged with the clover stems. I would love to get a small tractor, so I'll keep my eye open for a good used one. They are bloody expensive new.

 

[leverhead]

With the rocks you'll have up there, I'd use a tractor with a conventional plow first to find the rocks. Watch out for the ledge or really big stuff! It'll get deeper than a tiller will, after you pick the rocks out you could come back with a tiller to make it fine. If the soil is for hay/grass it should grow tobacco just fine the first year, maybe add some Nitrogen.

 

[BarG]

Well, I'd like to buy one anyway. So you're talking about a decent sized tiller that you push instead of some attachment for a tractor, correct?

With ten acres you could also get the disk and brush hog for a tractor. I still haven't got a tractor for my 13 acres. but I have a nice rear tine tiller and riding mower. I won't buy one without the front end loader.

 

[DonH]

Well it looks like I'll be moving into a new place with 12 acres on June 23. I'm pretty psyched, it's a six year old house built by a homebuilder who has been building houses, living in them for five years, then building another and selling the previous one. So it's built pretty well. And we're moving out of a 120 year old house that like any old house is a money pit. We looked at this new house last summer but it was way over our budget, but the owner took it off the market and put it back on this spring at a much reduced price. He came down more during negotiations, so it ended up in our price range (just).

So it turns out I started my tobacco a month too early. Luckily the new property has a 60 by 60 garden plot all ready to go, but I'm going to have to keep my seedlings going three extra weeks. I should be able to get a good crop, but saving seeds is unlikely. As for curing space there's a large multi-room dry basement that will work. So I don't have to worry about trying to cure it in a cold shed late in the season.

 

[holyRYO]

Congrats, soon to become a tobacco estate.

 

[Knucklehead]

Congratulations to you and your family. You'll see your utility costs come way down with the modern home.

Your plants will do fine that extra month. Keep them clipped and they will take off when you put them in that garden spot. I am very happy for you.

 

[DonH]

My plants and I are very anxious to get them in the ground next Tuesday. The frequent haircuts really worked well. I just transplanted them once from 72 cell trays to 36 cell trays. Next year I can skip any transplanting because they could have gone right from the 72 cell trays by June 1.

 

[Knucklehead]

They look really healthy and ready to get in the ground. They look like BigB seedlings, nice job. Will they be planted at the new house? I know you're excited.

 

[DonH]

They look really healthy and ready to get in the ground. They look like BigB seedlings, nice job. Will they be planted at the new house? I know you're excited.

Yep, they will be planted at the new house. Move-in date is a week from Monday. I would be excited except for the fact that I still need to pack up a bunch of stuff and am under an intense deadline at my job. So if excited means stressed, then yes I'm excited. But the deadline will be done by Monday then I'm taking a couple of weeks off work for move out and move in.

 

[DonH]

Well, I got moved into the new house a week ago and got the plants in the ground by Thursday. The soil wasn't great, I think the builder (8 years ago) cleared the woods and trucked in some fill and put some loam on top that is too clay-ey for tobacco. He did dig out a garden about 40' X 40' that I was able to use that has decent soil depth. The depth in the rest of the yard isn't more than 5 inches, so next year, if I want to expand, I'm going to have to truck in lots of compost and manure. The existing garden plot only gets 8 hours of sun, so it's not well placed for tobacco but that's all I had at my old place.

So I added some bone meal, blood meal, fertilizer and peat moss and put the plants in. I haven't found my electronic soil tester kit yet after moving, so I had to wing it. I got 148 plants in, thanks to planting the orientals in traditional close spacing. I'll get some pics up soon, but here's what I planted, heavy emphasis on flue cured types:

6 Gold Dollar
6 African Red
6 Reams
6 Bonanza
6 Gold Leaf
6 Silk Leaf
7 Hickory Pryor
12 Virginia Bright Leaf
6 White Mammoth
6 Shirey
6 Harrow Velvet
6 Lonnie's Havana
6 PA Broadleaf
3 Swarr
18 Izmir
12 Djebel
12 Harmanliiska Basma
12 Alma Ata
6 Azteca Rustica

Too late to save seeds, but I'm hoping to get some good leaf. I may have to top the plants by sometime in mid August whether or not they're flowering. I will be curing in the basement which has some windows on the curing end and is fairly dry. Right now in the summer it's at 60% humidity and 68F. So I should be able to control the curing conditions somewhat.

We love the house and the 12 acres. The house is definitely an upgrade for us and it's an upgrade for the chickens, too. The previous owner kept chickens and had a much nicer coop than we did and he left it.

 

[ArizonaDave]

Has anyone here ever tried the red russian? Kind of wondering what flavor it brings to the table?

 

[Chicken]

chickens are nice to have.. i have 6 of them ... 3 new jersey giants. and 3 rhode island reds.

sometimes i bring my big rooster in the house. to let him hang out. and my wife hates it.

 

[DGBAMA]

chickens are nice to have.. i have 6 of them ... 3 new jersey giants. and 3 rhode island reds.

sometimes i bring my big rooster in the house. to let him hang out. and my wife hates it.

I would either be DEAD or SINGLE, if I tried to bring our big rooster in the house.

 

[Rickey60]

I would either be DEAD or SINGLE, if I tried to bring our big rooster in the house.

me too.

 

[DonH]

Here's a pic of the new plot. I located my soil tester and everything should be good to go. The plants are just at that frustrating root development stage after 9 days. I want to see growth!

 

[Brown Thumb]

Plot Looks Good, Good to see you got time to move in and get them planted. You should be all settled in by now
Good Luck this year.
PS don't tell anyone, I have plants smaller than yours.
BT

 

[DGBAMA]

9 days, and still green, you will get a good start this week. At 9 days, most of mine had Sun scalded and had been reduced to not much more than a growth bud.

 

[DonH]

9 days, and still green, you will get a good start this week. At 9 days, most of mine had Sun scalded and had been reduced to not much more than a growth bud.

I think it's because my seedlings were in full sun for over a month before planting. And I transplanted the into larger, 2X2 cells. Or maybe the sun is weaker up here.