Growing baccer -- North-facing

[Muggs]

I have noticed on some Gold Leaf I'm growning,the south facing leaves are thicker.than those on the northern side.Im sure that's normal.but what effect does that have on the quality for the tobacco.
The leaves on the southern side are ripping faster.

 

[2Baccy]

I would assume the northerly leaves would be weaker in strength and burn better. Much the same as the lower leaves.
Tobacco grown in the us has a thicker leaf then Canadian tobacco for the same reason, more sun = thicker stronger leaf. (But the Canadian stuff is still better) haha

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

I have never done a side by side comparison where the same variety was grown at two different latitudes. However, I theorize that is not the case. The amount of sunlight variation by latitude is not nearly as significant as the difference caused by being a lower leaf, or even by the amount of cloud cover. If I have 16 hours of sunlight and you have 13 hours of overcast, guaranteed, my tobacco will grow better.

The thinner leaf you may be referring to is likely a matter of planting density and varietal. Canadian tobacco is bred, and planted closely for the purpose of mechanical harvesting, for one.

Also, I have grown American, Eastern European, Colombian, and Canadian flue cured types, and each variety has a different thickness, despite being grown in the same place.

 

[deluxestogie]

My Corojo 99 was planted in two adjacent beds in 2018, about 7' between the parallel beds, with the beds (16 plants each) oriented in the same direction. Seedlings for both beds were germinated in the same container, and the transplants grew within the same 1020 tray. The first bed was planted fairly late (~1 JUNE). The second bed was planted 2 weeks after that. The plants in the first bed were somewhat shorter and their leaves a little smaller and thinner than those in the 2nd bed. Same sun; same climate; same latitude; same exact weather minute by minute.

The only difference between the two beds was that the first was meticulously hand-weeded prior to planting, whereas the second bed was sprayed with Roundup 1 month prior to planting. During the growing season, weed intrusion seemed similar in the two beds.

So what accounts for the difference? I have no idea. It's not latitude, sun exposure, weather, or anything else I can think of.

Bob

 

[2Baccy]

I have never done a side by side comparison where the same variety was grown at two different latitudes. However, I theorize that is not the case. The amount of sunlight variation by latitude is not nearly as significant as the difference caused by being a lower leaf, or even by the amount of cloud cover. If I have 16 hours of sunlight and you have 13 hours of overcast, guaranteed, my tobacco will grow better.

The thinner leaf you may be referring to is likely a matter of planting density and varietal. Canadian tobacco is bred, and planted closely for the purpose of mechanical harvesting, for one.

Also, I have grown American, Eastern European, Colombian, and Canadian flue cured types, and each variety has a different thickness, despite being grown in the same place.

I totally agree different varieties will grow different leaf thickness in the same garden. But I’ve found plants in general to grow better on the south/south west sides / ripen quicker.
With a crop like soybean you buy seed based on heat units in your local climate. Seeds for the Midwest US are probably a higher heat unit seed then what is grown in Canada. This is why I assumed the same variety of tobacco grown farther south would yeild bigger thicker leaf on average.

 

[2Baccy]

My Corojo 99 was planted in two adjacent beds in 2018, about 7' between the parallel beds, with the beds (16 plants each) oriented in the same direction. Seedlings for both beds were germinated in the same container, and the transplants grew within the same 1020 tray. The first bed was planted fairly late (~1 JUNE). The second bed was planted 2 weeks after that. The plants in the first bed were somewhat shorter and their leaves a little smaller and thinner than those in the 2nd bed. Same sun; same climate; same latitude; same exact weather minute by minute.

The only difference between the two beds was that the first was meticulously hand-weeded prior to planting, whereas the second bed was sprayed with Roundup 1 month prior to planting. During the growing season, weed intrusion seemed similar in the two beds.

So what accounts for the difference? I have no idea. It's not latitude, sun exposure, weather, or anything else I can think of.

Bob

Could it have been the fact that removing the weeds from bed 1 was also removing nutrients. The roundup bed #2 would have been previousley dead and rotted, not tying up your nitrogen.

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

Which is it, heat units, or sunlight intensity?

I totally agree different varieties will grow different leaf thickness in the same garden. But I’ve found plants in general to grow better on the south/south west sides / ripen quicker.
With a crop like soybean you buy seed based on heat units in your local climate. Seeds for the Midwest US are probably a higher heat unit seed then what is grown in Canada. This is why I assumed the same variety of tobacco grown farther south would yeild bigger thicker leaf on average.

I wasn't considering heat units. I believe, like you, that heat units are a major factor involved in tobacco yield. I was merely considering the difference in photosynthesis re. lumens and angle-of-sun, and effect on leaf thickness.

Overall, I agree that the same tobacco plant grown in the same way, in the same soil, further south should yield more tobacco. I believe the reason would be much more related to temperature than sunlight intensity.

But of course, there is still an element of doubt because we don't know if our theory has been tested scientifically.

 

[deluxestogie]

Could it have been the fact that removing the weeds from bed 1 was also removing nutrients. The roundup bed #2 would have been previousley dead and rotted, not tying up your nitrogen.

Both beds received a full supplement of fertilizer, so I doubt that the excess provided by dead weeds made a significant difference--but maybe. Pulling weeds also alters the tilth of the soil, but both were subsequently tilled equally. I suspect that the timing of transplant was a major contributor, with the 2nd bed being transplanted during slightly warmer average daily temps.

I consistently notice that the laminar surface of every tobacco leaf, home-grown or commercial, is not symmetrical from one side of the central vein to the other. I haven't determined why. Perhaps in 2019 I will do some measurements of leaf-halves on growing plants, noting the respective compass orientations.

Commercial tobacco is grown by the acre, but our tobacco is pretty much grown by the plant. So any scientific testing to be done regarding micro-climate and solar orientation will have to be done by us. Scientists-Я-Us.

Bob

 

[ericthered]

I had to Google how to type a backwards R. Well done, Comrade Bob!

 

[deluxestogie]

Спасибо.

Bob

 

[fimbrew]

я is pronounced ya and means I. So I read it as Scientists I Us.

 

[deluxestogie]

Most American kids pronounce "Я" as "arr". Especially if they're pretending to be pirates.

Bob

 

[fimbrew]

Also, the hyphen - is shorthand for the 'to be' verb (am, are, is) but they usually just leave it out.

Я - учитель or Я учитель both mean I am a teacher.

So it actually makes sense in a way, may have more meaning than you intended.
Scientists am I, are us.
Poetically said.