New to the tobacco farming. I was shocked to see the dwindling number of tobacco farms in Georgia. I am looking forward to learning about this noble plant.
Hey Jubillee, welcome to the forum from North Central Missouri! Here you will find lots of information, helpful people, and a bunch of fun mixed in.
Ray
Welcome Jubillee, Theres quite a few experienced growers here, but quite a few of us are new to learning the art of tobacco growing, and everything that goes with it.
Thank to everyone that has welcomed me to the forum. I do feel welcome. Thanks to DeluxeStogie I am going to try the following varieties...FL Sumatra for the wrapper, Comstock Spanish as the binder, and either PA Red or Little Dutch for the Filler. Question is which do you think would be best for the filler (or would another variety be suggested) and what would be the best ratio of plants for the wrapper, filler, and binder?
I hate to say it but you're never really going to get a "good" answer. Everyone's tastes are different. I grew Penn Red a few years ago and thought it made a decent filler. I gave some cigars to a friend of mine and he thought they were really bland ( he smokes Punch). Also, keep in mind that you can vary the taste by adding different leaves from the same plant,ie top, middle, bottom
Jubillee,
Choose either as filler. If you remind me in the fall, when you have some leaf to work with, I'll send you a small bag of India Dark Air. I often add a tiny strip (length of the cigar x 1/4" or narrower) to dramatically alter the overall flavor and strength. When I roll a cigar with pure burley filler, I sometimes add the India Dark Air, sometimes a half-leaf of Little Dutch tips, or a half-leaf of any maduro tips that I happen to have handy. Of the thousands of cigars I have rolled, I don't think any two were the same.
Thanks DeluxeStogie and JitterbugDude, I think the complexities of cigars are the better part of their allure. I got my burley field planted this weekend, will post pictures soon.
I would like to purchase some plants from him, but I saw where he is selling seedlings at $2 each. This seems really high to me. I bought 500 burley seedlings at 8 cents each.
A Post from the University of Georgia...interesting how the old ways really were the best ways!!
Recent research has shown that a class of carcinogenic (cancer-causing) compounds known as tobacco specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) may be formed in flue-cured tobacco leaves during the curing process. These compounds are not found in green (uncured) tobacco. Research suggests that TSNAs are formed through a chemical reaction between nicotine and other compounds contained in the uncured leaf and various oxides of nitrogen (NOx) found in all combustion gases, regardless of the fuel used. Eliminating NOx compounds in the curing air by using a heat exchanger system has been shown capable of reducing TSNAs to undetectable levels in cured tobacco. The direct-fire curing systems used in curing barns are considered to be the major factor contributing to elevated levels of TSNAs in flue-cured tobacco. Further, there is no known fuel treatment or burner design that can eliminate these nitrogen compounds from combustion gases without the use of a heat exchanger (found in all indirect-fired systems). It is believed that reducing the levels of TSNAs in tobacco products would reduce some of the health concerns associated with tobacco use.To market tobacco in the U.S., producers must retrofit, or change, all barns used to cure the crop to operate with indirect-fired curing systems. An indirect-fired system passes the combustion gases through a heat exchanger and out of the barn, thereby preventing the mixing of flue gases with curing air. Systems with the combustion entirely outside the barn and that conduct the heat to the barn with hot water or steam have proven entirely satisfactory for reducing TSNAs and are acceptable.
My crop last year was mostly CT shade. My goal was a mild cigar. The CT shade by itself I thought was uninspiring. I got some Maryland 609 from FMGrowit and rolling that with a shade binder and wrapper is (for me) a nice mild smoke. I have a little burley and am going to roll a burley puro as a test smoke. Perhaps I'll like a burley/609 blend. Who knows? This year I and going to make some perique, as per Deluxe's recipe and try adding a strip of the to a few cigars. In my days of pipe smoking I liked blends that had a bit of perique. I also took suggestions from the group and am trying several varieties this year. I may not get a better smoke but it will be fun trying.
"and everything that goes with it" is a mouthful. I am learning so much about tobacco that I can't process it all. It is as if each day the knowledge is becoming lost and I must preserve it. I have met a 4 generation grower from the Tennessee Valley and he is a wealth of knowledge. I do enjoy learning new things and I believe this may become as obsessive as chess.
This is my tobacco field at Crooked Root Farms. I have 500 burley, 100 Spanish Comstock,100 Little Dutch, and 100 Pennsylvania Red. Thanks to Bigbonner!
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