Tim,
"Virginia" pipe tobacco can be any flue-cure variety that has been bright-cured (also called flue-cured), and can come from anywhere from Alabama to Zimbabwe.
The lemon-colored Virginias are almost exclusively flue-cure processed, to fix the light color. Flue-cure processed leaf undergoes little if any further aging, since the high temperature (165-195º+) denatures the leaf's oxidizing enzymes--the whole point of flue-cure processing. So called "mature Virginia" is any flue-cure variety that has been air-cured, then either aged for several years or kilned, both of which darken the color, broaden the flavor, and raise the pH. Stoving with steam accomplishes a similar result. The ultimate color of aged or kilned Virginia depends on many factors, which includes the particular named variety, the leaf position on the stalk (lower is brighter, higher is darker), how mature the leaf is when harvested, the ambient humidity during aging, and the duration of aging. Kilning pretty much takes "aging" to near completion in 4 to 6 weeks.
Most pipe and cigar forum discussions are limited to categorical discussions of tobacco varieties, or even just to the specifically processed product of commercially available pipe tobacco or cigar leaf manufacturers or brokers. To add to this, pipe tobacco ingredients such as Black Cavendish can be manufactured from nearly any variety of tobacco, each having its own unique characteristics.
Now, about growing flue-cure tobacco: The resulting leaf, if only air-cured (color cured), is fairly harsh stuff. If you age or kiln a flue-cure variety, you do end up with a nice tobacco that, like flue-cure processed leaf, has a somewhat lower pH, and offers a slight bite on the tip of the tongue. Smoking it straight, in a pipe, it does taste different from non-flue-cure varieties treated the same way. But to get that recognizable edginess of bright "Virginia" pipe tobacco, it needs to be flue-cure processed. FmGrowit does have some very nice flue-cure processed leaf for sale, which I have used to make some lovely English-style pipe blends.
Bob