Wruk53 2022 grow log

[wruk53]

Today is 9 weeks from transplant for Little Dutch. I included 2 pics of LD from my spring crop to show how much larger the current crop is at the same age. I've been feeding these twice as much as I did the spring crop. A few days ago, I moved my containers from 15 inch spacing to 20 inches for easier access to watering, feeding and suckering.

 

[wruk53]

Today is 2 weeks from topping. Most of the leaves are getting thick and crinkly. Probably within a few days, I'll stop feeding them and flush the roots with fresh water, then water only from there on out. I was hoping to have harvested them by Dec. 28th, but I don't believe they'll be ripe by then. We'll see. First/last frost dates here are 12/28 and 2/13 I believe. If we do have a predicted frost or freeze, they are at least mature enough to harvest.

Still no ripe papayas.

 

[wruk53]

Hello everyone. Today is five weeks from topping the Little Dutch. Yesterday, I primed 4 or 5 leaves from each plant, will probably stalk harvest the remainder next week. It's hard to tell from the photos, but the upper leaves are becoming mottled green/yellow.
I'm beginning to think the papayas are never going to ripen. There's some sort of strange looking bug on one of the fruits with a long-curved appendage on her tail inserted into the fruit. I assume she is laying eggs in the flesh of the fruit.
My ixora is in full bloom.

 

[deluxestogie]

papaya fruit fly - Toxotrypana curvicauda Gerstaecker

 

[wruk53]

Pretty much done with my 2022 grow log. Here is a terrible picture of my Little Dutch. We had a spell of low RH, so I had to resort to color curing in a box.

 

[wruk53]

About half of my fall/winter 2022 Little Dutch drying in the garage. The other half has been frog legged and bagged for aging.

A few months back, I made a batch of snus from my spring crop of LD. It had a pretty good smell and taste but was low in nicotine. From here on out, I'll just blend smaller amounts of LD with a higher nicotine variety.

 

[wruk53]

I like the way you have the pots all in perfect rows and aligned diagonally. It drives me nuts if anything is more than an inch off out in my field. Could just be my OCD, but I swear they grow better! Plus it looks good for the google spy satellite.

Let us know what you think of the Bucak when it's ready to smoke. I found it rather unique for a flu cured strain. I don't get much feed back from people who have grown it and would like to hear what others think.

Bucak review: I grew 24 Bucak plants last fall, air cured them, then attic kilned them for about 6 weeks. Today I rolled up a cigarette for review purposes. Note that I stopped smoking more than 30 years ago, so I'm probably not the best person to be giving reviews on smoking tobacco. The tobacco burned well and stayed lit with no relights required. It was smooth tasting with no tongue bite and no detectable sweetness. There was a little bit of throat hit, but not too much. I felt a little dizzy for a few minutes near the end, so the nicotine is definitely present. All in all, it reminded me of normal cigarette tobacco, something that could be smoked on its own or used as a blending component. I'll be using it for snus, blended with a dark air variety.
Growing notes: Bucak is a listed as a bright leaf type developed from a Virginia tobacco in Turkey. It is a vigorous grower with a good yield of large leaf of medium thickness. The only drawback for me is that I grow in containers and Bucak gets to be a pretty tall plant. I topped them fairly low to offset the danger of blow-overs. The leaf cured to a medium reddish-brown color and has a nice rich spicy tobacco smell to it. I'll see how it does in a snus blend, then decide if I want to grow it again.

 

[skychaser]

Thanks for the review and feed back. It's a productive strain and worth growing. I am terrible are describing the flavor of tobacco, or anything else. But to me it had a hint of spiciness to it. And remnant of it's oriental heritage.