I'm starting this thread to help vesta out with his NZ curing questions (moved from another thread)
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1877-hey-from-new-Zealand
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1877-hey-from-new-Zealand
vesta curing questions
- Thread starter Knucklehead
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First off, I think our terminology is different so lets get on the same page there. What you are calling drying we call color curing and there is alot more to it than just letting the leaf dry. It is the most critical part of the process. Mess it up and you end up with garden mulch. What you are calling curing we call kilning which is nothing more than speed aging the already cured leaf. This step replaces letting the tobacco naturally age over time. (About a year to make it tasty) Kilning reduces the aging to about a month to six weeks. Kilning is optional if you don't mind waiting for the natural aging over time.The flavoring comes last and is entirely optional. Most people here do not flavor but enjoy the natural taste of the tobacco and control that taste through blending different varieties. Some people do flavor, but we'll save that for another day, let's concentrate on your next step which will be color curing.
You can harvest by priming. That means pulling each leaf when it is mature. Or you can whole stalk harvest, which means cutting the entire plant when most of it is mature. I'll let someone else weigh in here. Whole stalk harvesting some of your varieties may actually help slow down your quick drying problem. There is more about that here: http://fairtradetobacco.com/links.php?ab_s=1
You will need to buy a thermometer and a hygrometer to monitor your curing process. The ideal average humidity is around 70%. Over 80% for too long and the leaves will mold and be ruined. Too low an average humidity and your leaves will dry green and be ruined. By average humidity, I mean if your humidity is high at night but low during the day, you will be ok if the average is close to 70%. People in different parts of the world have to approach this problem differently. Where it's too humid people have to introduce heat and air flow. Where it is too dry, like your situation, you have to introduce moisture. This can be done by hanging the leaves closer together, whole stalk harvesting and hanging the plant upside down, suspending towels from a bucket of water, wetting the floor, or a room moisturizer. There may be other methods, I'll let the other guys share what they do.
When you harvest the leaves they are still alive. Color curing is slowing down the dying process by keeping temperature and humidity in a balance that lets the leaves slowly die without molding or drying green. you have to cure and stay away from those two extremes. Most leaves will go from green to yellow and then from yellow to brown. After turning brown, they need to completely dry until the midrib is crispy. Then the cure is done and you can either bag them up and let them age or kiln them in the refrigerator kiln to speed age them. This is where the crock pot come in. There are several threads on kilning and we will cross that bridge later. Let's stick to color curing and save that crop. This is the most important step.
Now I'll let others weigh in and we'll answer any questions you may have.
You can harvest by priming. That means pulling each leaf when it is mature. Or you can whole stalk harvest, which means cutting the entire plant when most of it is mature. I'll let someone else weigh in here. Whole stalk harvesting some of your varieties may actually help slow down your quick drying problem. There is more about that here: http://fairtradetobacco.com/links.php?ab_s=1
You will need to buy a thermometer and a hygrometer to monitor your curing process. The ideal average humidity is around 70%. Over 80% for too long and the leaves will mold and be ruined. Too low an average humidity and your leaves will dry green and be ruined. By average humidity, I mean if your humidity is high at night but low during the day, you will be ok if the average is close to 70%. People in different parts of the world have to approach this problem differently. Where it's too humid people have to introduce heat and air flow. Where it is too dry, like your situation, you have to introduce moisture. This can be done by hanging the leaves closer together, whole stalk harvesting and hanging the plant upside down, suspending towels from a bucket of water, wetting the floor, or a room moisturizer. There may be other methods, I'll let the other guys share what they do.
When you harvest the leaves they are still alive. Color curing is slowing down the dying process by keeping temperature and humidity in a balance that lets the leaves slowly die without molding or drying green. you have to cure and stay away from those two extremes. Most leaves will go from green to yellow and then from yellow to brown. After turning brown, they need to completely dry until the midrib is crispy. Then the cure is done and you can either bag them up and let them age or kiln them in the refrigerator kiln to speed age them. This is where the crock pot come in. There are several threads on kilning and we will cross that bridge later. Let's stick to color curing and save that crop. This is the most important step.
Now I'll let others weigh in and we'll answer any questions you may have.
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Here's some helpful reading from the forum on curing:
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1374-Some-leaf-is-curing-green-can-I-reverse-it
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1156-2012-air-cured-season
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?155-How-do-you-guys-stalk-cure-your-Burley
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?168-When-is-the-best-time-to-harvest-your-plants
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1213-Cardboard-box-pile-curing
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1071-Stringing-Tobacco
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?649-Curing-Fermenting
This one shows different kilns. This step comes after color curing.
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1316-Gallery-of-Homemade-Tobacco-Kilns
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1374-Some-leaf-is-curing-green-can-I-reverse-it
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1156-2012-air-cured-season
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?155-How-do-you-guys-stalk-cure-your-Burley
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?168-When-is-the-best-time-to-harvest-your-plants
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1213-Cardboard-box-pile-curing
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1071-Stringing-Tobacco
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?649-Curing-Fermenting
This one shows different kilns. This step comes after color curing.
http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?1316-Gallery-of-Homemade-Tobacco-Kilns
jekylnz
Well-Known Member
Hey just a quick question,can and do people use heat pads like hot water bed heaters or plant propagation heat pads,reptile heat pads etc for kiln curing?
Also have I got it right that u use the heat source in conjunction with a humidor,(croc pot etc)with controled thermostat,humidistat etc??
And does anyone ever flavor at all during this process??
a was just wondering cause I have heat pads from growing cutting,and from keeping reptiles,also thermostats,meters etc.and a fogger(do you think this would work for humidity?
Also have I got it right that u use the heat source in conjunction with a humidor,(croc pot etc)with controled thermostat,humidistat etc??
And does anyone ever flavor at all during this process??
a was just wondering cause I have heat pads from growing cutting,and from keeping reptiles,also thermostats,meters etc.and a fogger(do you think this would work for humidity?
I've seen those used in somebody's thread before. I think the crock pot is used because it is readily availabe and provides heat and humidity with one power cord. There are all kinds of creative ways to utilize what you have on hand to get the job done. That's part of the enjoyment. We are always experimenting and looking for new and easier ideas to use in our own setups. Like Don said, there is no book or blue print. Yet.
A fogger would be great if you need to raise humidity during curing. You would have to experiment to see if you could use it in a kiln without getting the leaves too wet. A TDS meter is used with float trays to get the proper amount of fertilizer. BigBonner, a commercial grower, recommends taking a reading of your water and adding fertilizer until you get a reading of 9 for Burley and around 7.5 for other varieties.
A fogger would be great if you need to raise humidity during curing. You would have to experiment to see if you could use it in a kiln without getting the leaves too wet. A TDS meter is used with float trays to get the proper amount of fertilizer. BigBonner, a commercial grower, recommends taking a reading of your water and adding fertilizer until you get a reading of 9 for Burley and around 7.5 for other varieties.
leverhead
Well-Known Member
deluxestogie used one in his "Cozy Can" during the yellowing phase, flue-curing. A heat source is just that, a humidity source doesn't have to be any more complicated than a wet towel.
squeezyjohn
Well-Known Member
I've found that a greenhouse with strategically placed buckets of water work well for colour curing the tobacco when the summer is still with us here in the UK ... but I couldn't get it to work properly in any natural setting once the damp autumn kicked in and resorted to a propane heater which is expensive and I was nervous about the exhaust fumes!
I think that some sort of kiln to get the colour curing process out of the way quickly would be a godsend to my efforts - I'm absolutely fine about natural ageing of the tobacco - but it's getting a good colour cure that I struggled with.
Here's wishing for a less rainy UK summer next year!
I think that some sort of kiln to get the colour curing process out of the way quickly would be a godsend to my efforts - I'm absolutely fine about natural ageing of the tobacco - but it's getting a good colour cure that I struggled with.
Here's wishing for a less rainy UK summer next year!
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