deluxestogie Grow Log 2014

[deluxestogie]

You can put stakes at the corners of the beds to guide the hose.

What I have is a 4" plastic pulley wheel with a stake down the center to hold it. Dollar General Store. I bought 4 of them 4 years ago, and they are still holding up. I pull them up, and store indoors during the winter.

It rained again (hard!) after I had watered half the beds this evening. But when it passed, I could still tell the difference between the beds I watered, and the ones that received only rain. That should hold them for a day or two.

Bob

 

[deluxestogie]

Seeking an Angle of Repose

My last variety is now in the ground. Despite being fairly small, their root systems were looking encouraging. So out they went.

Djebel 174 with yardstick.

I had intended to plant them closely in 3 staggered rows of 7:8:7. What I ended up with is determined by the number of somewhat adequate seedlings (24). So I did 4 staggered rows of 6:6:6:6. They'll just have to adjust to their lot in life. Actually "Djebel" is short for Xanthi Djebel, traditionally grown higher on the mountain slopes than Xanthi Yaka. So they should be happy when crowded, impoverished and oppressed. They were immediately hidden from the world beneath Agribon.

My remaining task (except for the whole season's remaining tasks) is to peek under all my spreads of Agribon to take a survey of unexpected vacancies, then see if I have suitable replacements. [I've got over 100 extras, but no more than 4 of each variety.]

To celebrate today's milestone, I went to the store and purchased a giant bag of toxic waste called "Cheezy Cornpuffs." They're those odd things that simply dissolve on your tongue. My eating the Cheezy Cornpuffs may cause my grandchildren to become cretins.

Bob

 

[Jitterbugdude]

That's a strange looking yardstick. I'm used to seeing the Burial Vault Stick (BVS)... well, at least you can now enjoy your VaPer tobaccos...

 

[rainmax]

I have two Jakas myself. Jaka Kireciler (TI 1320) and Jaka Dzebel (TI 1326) and both are very slow also BS Basma.
I only plant Basma on the field and It looked similar size like yours. Jakas will probably stay in pots. Congrats for first part of your growing. From now on is on mother natures hands. Good luck.

 

[deluxestogie]

From now on is on mother natures hands.

But it's my hands that keep getting dirty.

well, at least you can now enjoy your VaPer tobaccos...

Only one left to go.

Bob

 

[garryricketson]

I have been enjoying looking and reading your blog, it is almost like I was there, visiting.....Can you tell more about the Agribon-AG15, Where can one get it ?, price,...what else does it do besides keeping the gremlins out,? Looks like pretty neat material, ahh. and how long it lasts, can it be used next year ? Thanks

 

[deluxestogie]

Agribon AG-15 is a lightweight, spun row cover material. I use it as a row cover (like I've done so far this season) and for sewing insect barrier bags for seed collection. It provides 10% shade, as well as about 2ºF frost protection.

118" x 50' --> http://www.johnnyseeds.com/p-5455-agribon-ag-15-118-x-50.aspx $20.95
118" x 250' --> http://www.johnnyseeds.com/p-5456-agribon-ag-15-insect-barrier-118-x-250.aspx $59.00 (Waterville, Maine)

As a row cover, it will typically last 2 or 3 seasons.

Also available from
http://www.environmentalgreenproducts.com/store/agribon-ag-15-pr-16354.html (Ashland, OR)

Bob

 

[garryricketson]

Hmm, ok thanks, that may be something , for next year,...I am looking into various means to provide some protection on my transplants, IE: shade,wind,insects,..gremlins, etc.

 

[Boboro]

Put art round them.

 

[Boboro]

For shade.

 

[deluxestogie]

Flea Beetle Circus

Step right up, folks. For one thin dime--one tenth of a dollar--you too can witness the amazing...

The leaf damage shown below is from a Ping Tung Chinese eggplant. I know it's flea beetle damage, because there are flea beetles partying on the leaf. They are not shy. They hardly moved when I place the dime on the leaf, and then moved only to climb onto it, and check out FDR's likeness. As you can see, one of these flea beetles is just a bit larger than Franklin Roosevelt's nose.

Flea beetles on eggplant.

Flea beetles visibly resemble fleas, because they have rear jumping legs.

Without some poison, they will completely devour an entire eggplant, no matter how large. So I apply permethrin powder to the leaves, remove any open blossoms (to protect pollinators), and I do this only with eggplant. I don't think I would want to smoke tobacco leaf that has had permethrin applied, even though I can't point to any specific toxicology study. [I can imagine the facial expressions on NIH functionaries as they review the grant proposal for studying the wellbeing of smokers who apply permethrin to their tobacco.]

Flea beetles have a thing for eggplant. Adjacent peppers (also in tobacco's solanaceae family) are left untouched. In the past, I've observed that flea beetles--like each of us--are partial to specific varieties of tobacco.

Bob

 

[chillardbee]

Man, give them a dime and they take a dollar. I guess in some cases it's nessesary to use what ever means to eliminate pests.

 

[Boboro]

They are very fond of the Japainese egg plant. An old lsdy told me to put sevin dust in the hole when plantin and you wouldn't get them. Works ever time.

 

[deluxestogie]

They are very fond of the Japainese egg plant. An old lsdy told me to put sevin dust in the hole when plantin and you wouldn't get them. Works ever time.

If I just dust the leaves, I can pretend that there's no permethrin in the fruit.

Bob

 

[Michibacy]

I'm not sure how familiar you are with chemicals Bob (I'm guessing quite familiar) but products containing Lambda cyhalothrin or Beta Cyhalothrin works wonders with flea beetles (I live in wheat country, as soon as harvest starts those buggers are like wild fire), if you want a more natural/organic route; Chrysanthemum (Mum) tea (from the flowers), Chrysanthemum extract or even planting Chrysanthemums around the plots help keep those pests away.

Cheers, and happy growing!
(ps everything looks really good! your gardens are a lot more advanced than mine! We still had 35*F temps at night less than 3 weeks ago!)

 

[Jitterbugdude]

I put a heavy coat of Diatomaceous Earth on them. Works fantastic but reapplication every day when it rains is a pain

 

[deluxestogie]

...products containing Lambda cyhalothrin or Beta Cyhalothrin works wonders with flea beetles (I live in wheat country, as soon as harvest starts those buggers are like wild fire), if you want a more natural/organic route; Chrysanthemum (Mum) tea (from the flowers), Chrysanthemum extract or even planting Chrysanthemums around the plots help keep those pests away.

Chrysanthemum is the natural source of the neurotoxin pyrethrin. Permethrin is a synthetic form, a pyrethroid. It is applied to clothing marketed as "mosquito repellent," and is relatively non-toxic to most mammals. [Cats are quite sensitive to it.]

I use permethrin only on eggplant.

Bob

EDIT: Cyhalothrin is also a pyrethroid, but is longer acting, and breaks down more slowly.

 

[deluxestogie]

Where to Place Your Elderly Loved Ones

[queue soppy piano music]
I'm so glad I chose an Independent Living Center for my elderly loved ones. It's the only facility that can provide them with all their needs. It allows them to continue to grow and mature with dignity.

Independent Living Center may not be held responsible for any damages caused by birds, insects, herbivores, weather, theft, acts of war or acts of God.

These four lucky tobacco plants, germinated in 2012, and held in confinement since that time, are now being given the opportunity to live out their senior years in the garden (thanks to the loss of half of my Prilep at the hands [beaks] of some enterprising birds).

Each of these (Havana 263, Havana 38, Dominican Olor and Golden Burley) have been topped a number of times, after going to seed a number of times. They were kept (in small pots) outdoors during the summers of 2012 and 2013, and indoors during the intervening winters. They have never received supplemental fertilizer. They have been nothing more than stumpy runts. Is it too late for them to produce meaningful leaf? We'll see.

Bob

 

[forumdotabaco]

nice experiment do you intend to keep them for 10 years? do you still have the original seed?

 

[deluxestogie]

...do you intend to keep them for 10 years? do you still have the original seed?

This is their last hurrah. At the end of this season, these particular plants will pass on to a better place. I do have 9 other 2012 tobacco plants still maintained in pots (6" and 3-1/2"), that I will nurse along for at least another season.

I keep seed from everything.

My initial question was, "how long can a transplant be held, and still grow to a normal plant?" This has transformed into an observation of tobacco as a tidy little, seed-producing house plant.

Bob