MichaelSanders 2017 Grow Blog

[MichaelSanders]

I've ordered my seeds from Sustainable Seed Co. I've spent almost $40 bucks so far. As soon as they arrive I'll start planting seeds. I bought 5 plastic 288 ct. cell trays from a company in California a few years ago. Here's a pic.

 

[deluxestogie]

I've ordered my seeds from Sustainable Seed Co.

Helpful to know. I've looked at their site. There is a page title for "Izmir Ozbis," but the description correctly names it as "Izmir Ozbas". I've notified their support folks about the error. Definitely not your fault.

Using such tiny tray cells, you'll likely have to do an intermediate transplant from the 288 cell tray into pots, prior to the plants maturing enough to endure going out in the ground. They'll need about 6 to 8 weeks of growth to be ready.

Bob

 

[greenmonster714]

Quite a list ya got going there. I'm interested to see how that Ancient Tobacco seed grows for ya. According to the description @ sustainable seeds they're not even sure what you'll get except a plant with some large leaves..lol. I'm always interested in seeing folks grow varieties I don't normally see.

I'm with Bob on the trays. I've got 1020 trays with 36 deep 3" inserts per tray and man did I ever have a hard time getting those tiny starters transplanted. Did you use those trays before? I remember you mentioning in your intro that you've been growing for a few years.

It is great to see another grow log go up. I'll have to sub to this one as well.

 

[MichaelSanders]

Here's a link to the trays.
Proptek 288 Cell Vegetables Propagation Tray | Proptek
https://www.proptek.com/trays/vegetable-trays/288s67b-288-cell-tray/114
I paid about $125-$130 for 5 of them. Can't remember exactly. They are really great! Heavy plastic! Almost like plastic milk crate thick construction. One of my most favorite purchases!

 

[greenmonster714]

They look great Mike. You mentioned before that you have grown off n on. What did you use before when you started tobacco?

 

[MichaelSanders]

Lol! I used small white bathroom cups. It took forever to do a 100 or so. What a pain! That's why I got the cell trays. I was told that the shipping would cost more than the trays because they were really heavy. I started seeds in a seed tray, no cells. Then transplanted to peat pellets. Then when they were 2-3 inches tall, then to the garden. I generally plant in the last week's of June or beginning of July.
I mainly get Virginia brightleaf and Havana for a few years. Then I was given some rustica seed and liked it. I thinned it down with Virginia, but after moving from Oklahoma I lost my seed stock and put it on the back burner for awhile.
Due to being homeless for a bit and wandering around I needed something to keep my focus on something cheap. I tried to find a hobby that didn't cost much and buying my smokes is getting tough. I managed to get my old job back and I'm on my feet again. Now I'm more focused, like a squirrel preparing for armageddon. I'm stacking my cash in preparation to buy some land of my own.

 

[greenmonster714]

It's good to see ya got back on your feet. Yeah, buying smokes is pretty expensive these days plus they have a ton of additives. I look forward to seeing how those ancient tobacco seeds come out for ya. I bet it will be pretty strong stuff. Being here at the forum is a pretty great reference for us growers. We witness each others grows and can compare information. I can relate to those small bathroom cups. I've got most of my tobacco in 1020 trays with 36 inserts in each of the six trays. Then I have a few extra strains I didn't plan on growing in the 3oz cups. It is a tedious operation for sure but it should all pay off. Best of luck to ya Mike. I look forward to watching your garden grow.

 

[Charly]

It's good you managed to go through these difficult moments !
Life if all about ups and downs, sometimes it's easy, sometimes it's hard, all we can do is to hang on !

Good luck with your grow Michael.

 

[MichaelSanders]

lol! sorry. I was just thinking about being homeless for awhile.
I spent a lot of my time just walking around and trying to thumb it across the eastern us. Nothin Will make you appreciate sleep than spending the night under Washington rd bridge in Augusta Ga.
I hitched it from Morgantown Wv. To Greenwood Sc. Then to Augusta. Then toward Sandersville, where I stopped to pick a few leftover cotton balls from a cotton field. I never seen cotton before, so I had to stop and look. So I picked some, lol! I'm currently have 4 plants out of 7-8 seeds that I planted, but 1 seedlings not doing so good. Anywho, I can't help thinking about how free I felt walking south.

 

[greenmonster714]

Great story man. Its amazing we even live through some of the sheet we do. I once walked off a job in Culpepper Va and hitch rides all the way back to Ohio. Slept under a bridge one night. It was cold and was spitting snow. Long night for sure. Luckily the next day a trucker picked me up. He had a parrot in the cab with him as a travel buddy. He took me all the way to Ohio and I had my wife come pick me up at the truck stop. I think that was around 1989.

 

[MichaelSanders]

My Seeds Arrived.

I'm planning to grow some of these for cigars. I'm thinking Havana/Negro Black/Prilep.
After I got my seeds in today, the old lady's on my case to get something for her. She smokes cheap menthols. So I'm thinking maybe, a burley with menthol tubes. What do you folks recommend?

 

[Bex]

Wow, an interesting blog, and your adventures are amazing. I'm glad that things have settled down for you....I get the impression that most of the people here are cigar or pipe smokers. Being in the minority, I smoke cigarettes - I was a Marlboro smoker for years, so like a cigarette with a bit of a 'kick'. I currently use (and am trying to grow) a mix of lemon Virginia and burley. For me, at least, the burley on its own is pretty strong, and a bit cigar tasting - if you've ever had a More cigarette, it is something like that. The problem, of course, with Virginia, is that it needs to be flue cured - I've been struggling with this for the past couple of years, using an old chest freezer, crock pot, etc (pretty much following the crock pot flue curing method, as well as Stogie's memorable cozy can thread), and last year was somewhat successful. The burley is simple enough - it needs to be hung and air cured. I tried this two years ago, and was well on my way to success with it when the roof of the shed, where it was hung, blew off in a winter storm. I am trying again this year, in the hopes that I can get a decent crop of burley and virginia. My current 'blend' is 50% burley/50% virginia, and this can be strengthened or made more mild by reducing or adding the virginia (which, sadly, to me, really tastes like nothing - extremely mild, and is used to reduce the strength of the burley). So, I would personally suggest the virginia/burley mix, with the menthol tubes, rather than just the burley alone.

Just thinking.....it might be an idea for you to purchase a small shipment of the virginia and burley through the forum, get a box of menthol tubes, and play with the blend to see what your wife would like.....????