WillQuantrill 2024: starting on time.

[Old Gasman]

I love travelling and I love learning about the different ways people live and their attitudes. As I said, you would never see that here, every house owner has a fence around there property so that no one can see in, I think maybe we're more reserved than our American cousins. Another thing I always find striking is when I see on TV people flying The Stars and Stripes in their front yard, if I flew The Union Flag here I'd get very strange looks from people. People are interesting dont you think?

 

[ProZachJ]

At least in Texas, chain link was the suburban norm into the mid 80s? somewhere after that privacy fencing has dominated new construction as lots have gotten smaller and smaller.

 

[WillQuantrill]

I love travelling and I love learning about the different ways people live and their attitudes. As I said, you would never see that here, every house owner has a fence around there property so that no one can see in, I think maybe we're more reserved than our American cousins. Another thing I always find striking is when I see on TV people flying The Stars and Stripes in their front yard, if I flew The Union Flag here I'd get very strange looks from people. People are interesting dont you think?

Human idiosyncrasies are funny to me. But I also think the world as a whole could use a better sense of humor.

 

[WillQuantrill]

At least in Texas, chain link was the suburban norm into the mid 80s? somewhere after that privacy fencing has dominated new construction as lots have gotten smaller and smaller.

Funny thing about fences, my favorite neighbor (now deceased) was a widower and original owner of his house. Both of our houses were built in 1960 we had many conversations about lawns, cars and life in general at the fence line even though there was 40+ years difference between us. He told me that when the houses were originally built there were no fences and everyone's back yard was an impromptu park/football field for the neighborhood kids. But sometime in the 70's one resident constructed a fence and caused a bit of a rabble because it had jarred the neighborhood harmony. But then again if your neighbor puts a fence on the property line you can take it as a financial favor and just finish the other 3 sides. Keeping up with the Jones' kinda thing.

 

[WillQuantrill]

9 days from transplant and alotta work done this weekend. Cut that damn dead tree down right next to my dip patch. In retrospect it was only blocking the evening sunlight but it needed dealt with. Told my wife I may cut it lower to the ground with a flat cut and hollow it out for a natural planter. Also painted ye Olde kiln I built last year, it worked so well I figured a coat of paint would dress it up and extend its lifespan. Not that I had planned to but my favorite home store had some brand name exterior paint+primer that had been discontinued for $25/gal. Kind of actually prefer the "brick" red color. Alot better than raw OSB. In the garden we take the goods with the bads. Last Tuesday night we had a Thunderstorm blow through... tornado sirens and all that brought small hail damage. Only saw one plant with a leaf actually snapped off but quite a few that are pretty tattered. Reminded me of the video Arturo Fuente posted a couple years ago of their wrapper leaf fields getting destroyed by large hail. Made me feel better. Seems like my Burley and SSBM have just a little yellowing from transplant but have grown from being put in the ground. Supposed to get 2" of rain accumulation this week so I predict these are the worst my plants will look this season. Happy Mothers Day yall!

 

[johnny108]

The nice thing about dip: Leaf appearance doesn't matter!

 

[WillQuantrill]

The nice thing about dip: Leaf appearance doesn't matter!

Indeed!

 

[WillQuantrill]

12 days from transplant and we have had precipitation of some sort the last 3 days which has perked up the babies. Noticeable growth with all varieties but the Burley and SSBM are definitely shrugging off transplant shock. First picture is a Burley then the whole garden. Out of the cigar varieties looks like FL Sumatra is the tallest so far at 9-10" with the Vallejano the shortest but looking good. Primed off the really tattered mudlugs as I figure at some point its just a waste of the plants energy.

 

[WillQuantrill]

Weekly update, 16 days from transplant and all shock has worn off. I do have a small amount of insect damage on Criollo's atleast I think it's insect. I treated with Imidacloprid granules a week before transplant. Set out my all natural rodent deterrents as well for squirrel and rabbit. Otherwise things look good. Bonus picture of my kiln after I painted it and reinstalled the electronics. Thanks to @FmGrowit for the outdoor thermometer last Christmas season.

 

[WillQuantrill]

24 days after transplant, yes I miscounted last week. Things are going swimmingly, all varieties look to be thriving minus the minor pest damage. Cuban Criollo has taken the lead at 19" height, the Long Red and Florida Sumatra are not far behind and have bushed out nicely. Was starting to think about actually watering for the first time yesterday but then we had a nice small thunderstorm roll through last night. Even the CC I took a picture of last week that was eaten up has bounced back nicely.
Kind of like watching babies grow I am excited for the next phase because some of these look to be really beautiful leaves if I can keep them intact. And if any FTT friends reading this are vets, I appreciate yall. Happy Memorial Day weekend fellas.

 

[Anders A]

24 days after transplant, yes I miscounted last week. Things are going swimmingly, all varieties look to be thriving minus the minor pest damage. Cuban Criollo has taken the lead at 19" height, the Long Red and Florida Sumatra are not far behind and have bushed out nicely. Was starting to think about actually watering for the first time yesterday but then we had a nice small thunderstorm roll through last night. Even the CC I took a picture of last week that was eaten up has bounced back nicely. View attachment 51308View attachment 51309View attachment 51310
Kind of like watching babies grow I am excited for the next phase because some of these look to be really beautiful leaves if I can keep them intact. And if any FTT friends reading this are vets, I appreciate yall. Happy Memorial Day weekend fellas.

They look great

 

[WillQuantrill]

They look great

Thank you friend, I am jealous of the nice plot of land you are working on.

 

[WillQuantrill]

32 days after transplant, my prize Criollo has grown 9" in 8 days. Weather has been favorable besides 2 cloudy mornings. Burley is filling out well 1st pic 9 on the left. Just this week Long Red is distinguishable from FL Sumatra as the leaves are starting to elongate. But it seems a couple haven't started their growth spurt skyward. Currently the FL Sumatra has the best looking healthy leaf with the Vallejano,5 rear picture 4 have more narrow sparse leaf. Not gonna jump to conclusions yet on varieties. Picture 5 is a better look at KY17 and the last picture is my seed donor FL Sumatra that's potted next to the house. Doing better than I thought it would growing in my big pot.

 

[Knucklehead]

They are taking off now. Good job!

 

[WillQuantrill]

They are taking off now. Good job!

The most exciting part of growing...how tall will they get!

 

[ProZachJ]

The most exciting part of growing...how tall will they get!

So true, that timeframe after transplant when they are successfully established and starting to reach for the sky is magic.

 

[WillQuantrill]

38 days after transplant, and I've noticed something. The Burley's bottom leaves, picture 5, are quite prone to damage from the new grass, not a huge loss but worth noting as there is a noticable difference because this is the area that was freshly tilled for this year's garden. More proof that my cover of Chrimson Clover worked well to oppress grass returning on the existing garden soil. Second point that has me kind of puzzled (see pictures 2&3), my 5 Vallejano plants while still growing well are kind of scrawny. I don't think they will thrive in my environment. Directly to the right of those are 5 Long Red's that are robust, doing well, but height is an issue. All of these plants were sewn from seed and transplanted at the same times. Look closely and the tallest LR is already developing seed pods with 1 flower about to bloom. This would be normal but there are 3 of the other LR's that look like they failed to launch upward. The plants look real healthy but have not accumulated much height. If anyone has experience with the Long Red variety feel free to chime in as it seems weird to me the plant height can have so much variation at the same age. Picture 3 shows the best contrast with other LR in the background still hugging the ground.

Meanwhile FL Sumatra is coming up on the heels of Cuban Criollo height wise within an inch or two. The Criollo doesn't look like it is gonna yield more though as the stems have much more spacing. But 13" in 6 days is pretty impressive. Sometime this week I'm gonna start yanking mud lugs.

 

[deluxestogie]

If you allow weeds and grass to thrive within the tobacco bed, you can expect poor or unpredictable growth.

Bob

 

[WillQuantrill]

If you allow weeds and grass to thrive within the tobacco bed, you can expect poor or unpredictable growth.

Bob

I didn't expect it to come back as thick after tilling and adding material, unforeseen outcome of garden expansion I guess. Any tips on grass mitigation short of hand picking?

 

[furryfreek]

I'd just go at it with a hoe and hand pick the hard to reach bits. Well established grass can be a pain to hoe but if you repeat every week or so it's hardly a chore. Just scrape the surface and job done.