Who expected tobacco in MN? @Rock Knocker

[Rock Knocker]

Hello, I'm brand new here!

I spent $5 on tobacco seeds this spring for a bit of fun and this Connecticut Broadleaf is growing like a weed.

I wasnt expecting such a large and easy to grow crop and now I'm wondering what I can do with it in the future. I recently purchased 24 acres in the center of Minnesota, the soil is a bit crappy from my original opinion but it seems the tobacco loves the clay rich gravely soil, but MN is in a drought right now so I wonder if a wet year the tobacco wouldnt do so well.

So I'm here to try to find out what I am doing. I'm thinking of trying a larger operation next year with the chance of getting into a small commercial type operation if MN is capable in normal weather conditions.

I also have enough cedar logs to build a tobacco kiln... so I need to find out how that works also.

But hello!

 

[deluxestogie]

Welcome to the forum. Check the New Growers' FAQ, and search topics of interest in our Index of Key Forum Threads. Both are linked in the menu bar.

Bob

 

[Knucklehead]

Welcome. Thank you for joining us.

 

[MarcL]

Welcome to Fair Trade Tobacco.

 

[Oldfella]

Welcome from me in NZ. Thanks for joining us you'll get all you need to know here.
Oldfella

 

[Alpine]

Welcome to FTT

pier

 

[Yultanman]

Welcome!!!

also have enough cedar logs to build a tobacco kiln... so I need to find out how that works also.

But hello!

Unless you have spanish cedar logs id avoid that route. Cedar is highly aromatic and would likely off flavour you end product. Not that i have personal experience doing it so take with grain of salt
if you do have spanish cedar logs, well youre sitting on a fortune @ $12-15/bd ft last time I bought some. Spanish cedar is similar to mahogany moreso than it is to actual cedar

 

[Rock Knocker]

Yes Yultanman I was a bit worried about that. My plan long before growing tobacco was to build a cordwood house, cordwood has the logs cut to the desired thickness of your walls then stacked and mortared with cut ends faceing the inside and outside of the walls. Instead of the traditional Lincoln log type log structure.

So the two reasons I want to go this route is first because I have more than a semi load of white cedar logs, I need to use them and it's some of the best for building with. Second is that I want to practice and learn how to make cordwood walls on a smaller simpler structure before starting then tearing down and redoing my house walls.

My plan all along was to start a small building first so if i can build it from the start to cure tobacco but still keep it as an all around useful structure, I might as well figure it out.

But cordwood walls work well for stucco exteriors or mudded over logs for a clean finish interior, so I should be able to seal the logs inside aand hopefully with ventilation theres no problem.

 

[Gabeb123]

Welcome to the forum! This has been my third year growing tobacco in central MN(or anywhere).

I feel like my plants have been a little stunted this year compared to other years. It's hard to say for sure because all the varieties I grew this year are new to me and anyways I have the memory of a goldfish.

The issue I have been running into has been getting the plants to color cure(I'm growing for cigars). Winter comes so fast here that most of my leaf isn't brown by the time it's crispy. This year I made a space to color cure in my house but that may be hard commercially.

 

[Rock Knocker]

I figured I would need some type of heat, I was thinking of a wood stove with the the fire box inside and heat exhaust, and then a pan of water on the fire box or a drip system to drip water. I already have a stove just like it I can cook on top of, toss snow on for added humidity inside or keep a pan of water for melting snow or boiling for humidity. It could even be inside or outside the building with ducts letting heat in and theres a fan on it already to blow air or with short ducts and correct a ngling the rising heat from the stove circulates a surprising amount of air on its own.

 

[GIL]

Welcome to FTT.