It's normal for tobacco to wilt down during the day and stand back up in the evening. If they don't recover in a little while they need water. They can withstand dry conditions very well but can drown quickly in standing water (not a problem with my drain hole at 1") I haven't watered the plants since I moved them to pools because we got some rain previously. (we get decent rain in the spring where I live but summer can be very hot and very dry, I'm getting ready for summer) I'm just monitoring them to see how long they can go before I need to water again. I don't want to water too much, but I don't want to have to water daily like I did last summer which is why I decided to try them in the kiddie pools with an inch of water as a reservoir. I think crowding the grow bags together will also slow evaporation. If I can water every other day during the heat of the summer when the temps can stay in the upper 90F range (occasional days over 100F) I will have a day off every other day and can plan other things, rather than be tied to the plants like a ball and chain. I was sick one day last summer and missed watering one single day and the stalks dropped to the ground like they were polyester rope and the bags fell over on the side. (orientals in one gallon grow bags) I couldn't stand them back up until I had watered the roots while laying on their side and they got enough moisture to the stalk to be able to stand back up. I missed one day and thought I had lost them. Wilting is a sign that I haven't overwatered, but I have to figure out when the plants have too little water. My best year was during a drought. I had them in a garden in the ground and didn't water at all. The plants were short, but had big, tightly spaced leaves of a normal count and the flavor and nicotine were perfect and they cured very easily. (I let them mostly yellow on the plant which helped the curing but that also makes the flavor stronger) This is my secong year in grow bags and I am learning as I go. Trying to find the right balance without doing too much or too little. Crowding plants this closely is new to me so I'm doing some experimenting to see what others can get away with in grow bags in a small space, maybe even on a balcony in a city apartment or tiny yard.
Same plants this morning. They recovered in about 15 minutes in the shade yesterday so they still had some moisture in the soil.
Also, allowing them to dry and wilt down forces the plant to put down bigger stronger roots in search for moisture to survive.
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