Right now, everything’s just getting a move on. Animals and insects are peeking out of their winter refuge, the weather is pushing toward warmer days, and plants are beginning to spread their leaves and grow. You’re getting a move on, too. You’re bringing your plants from the winter warmth of the greenhouse and putting them […]
Yes, you’ve packed away your equipment or taken it to get those necessary repairs. Yes, your fields are taking a break from tobacco, at least for now. But you know your work doesn’t end with the growing season. Winter’s the best time to get your ducks in a row, to start planning your contracts and […]
This summer has probably left many of you wishing you had giant umbrellas for your fields. After years of worrying about drought, the skies opened up on many growers’ fields, dumping more than 30 inches in just a few short weeks on some fields in the East. With drenched and drowning plants growing thin and […]
Growers, we know you’re all too familiar with the challenges accompanying securing enough labor to efficiently and economically plant and harvest your tobacco. Some of you who grew up on tobacco farms remember watching your own parents experience the same struggles finding help. “For my dad, recruiting labor was a year-round process,” said David Sutton, […]
How do you have the most successful final product possible? You must have a successful beginning. For tobacco farmers, this means starting out with strong seeds that grow into healthy transplants. With a seed so small its volume ranges from 10,000 to 20,000 seeds per gram, transformation from the fragile seedling stage into hardy transplants […]
The first step to financial security is establishing a budget. Here’s how it works: 1. Start with the expected yield per acre and multiply it by the number of acres to be planted. 2. Multiply that number by the price you expect to receive (the total of your anticipated gross receipts). 3. From that number, […]
Experts estimate that about 75 percent of total labor hours in tobacco production are performed by international seasonal workers. To employ these workers, growers must use the H-2A visa program—a program that can seem complicated and difficult to navigate. Last year, Congress passed no new legislation on the H-2A program; however, a few promising program […]
This economy has everyone taking a hard look at what they spend versus what they take in. Modern tobacco farmers are no different. They are constantly reviewing their input costs to see what they can trim from their expenses without sacrificing the quality of their product. Keeping a record of how every dime was spent […]
At a loss for how to plan out a favorable crop rotation program? Let the experts help. The Virginia flue-cured guide offers the following examples of successful programs Virginia growers have used: 1-year rotation: Tobacco followed by small grain or ryegrass cover crop 2-year rotation: 1st year: Tobacco followed by small grain and fescue or […]
When plants are exposed to too much water, it’s hard to determine whether they are drowning or suffering from nutrient leaching. Leaching occurs when some nutrients sink below normal rooting depth because of an excess of water percolating through the root zone of deep, sandy soil. If a grower’s soil is composed of clay within […]
Although 2013 weather was damaging to Kentucky burley fields—experts estimate that about 5 percent of the crop was lost—curing conditions were better than average. Even though the yield was lower, the quality, because of the good curing, was higher, leading to higher prices. Bob Pearce, tobacco agronomist at the University of Kentucky, predicts that high […]
The key to controlling weeds, just as in controlling insects and diseases, is proper identification. According to the North Carolina State University (NCSU) Flue-Cured Tobacco Guide, common weeds that affect tobacco crops include nutsedges, morningglories, common ragweed, pigweed and horsenettle. Growers need to identify the types of weeds that are present and should consult their […]
The best soils for growing tobacco have good internal drainage that keeps standing moisture away from roots and, at the same time, good water-holding capabilities to combat dry spells in the growing season. (Note that you should always avoid transplanting into saturated soils, as tobacco roots require aeration and can begin to die in as […]
Proper crop rotation is one of a farmer’s best weapons against disease. Planting tobacco in the same field in consecutive years puts your crop at risk for disease and can also strip the land of vital nutrients. While rotating crops can be more difficult for burley farmers, experts cannot stress the importance of rotation enough. […]
Right now, everything’s just getting a move on. Animals and insects are peeking out of their winter refuge, the weather is pushing toward warmer days, and plants are beginning to spread their leaves and grow. You’re getting a move on, too. You’re bringing your plants from the winter warmth of the greenhouse and putting them […]
In early October, the European Parliament voted to postpone a ban on menthol cigarettes to 2021 and scale down the size of health warnings on cigarette packets. Instead of approving the proposal that health warnings should cover 75 percent of packaging (up from the current requirement that warnings cover 30 percent of the front and […]
Yes, you’ve packed away your equipment or taken it to get those necessary repairs. Yes, your fields are taking a break from tobacco, at least for now. But you know your work doesn’t end with the growing season. Winter’s the best time to get your ducks in a row, to start planning your contracts and […]
Tobacco country weather puts a web blanket on crop reports According to the USDA’s July 11 Flue-Cured Crop Production Report, total flue-cured tobacco acreage planted was up about 11,000 acres in 2013 from last year. Georgia planted 5,000 additional acres for a total of 15,000, and North Carolina planted an additional 6,000 acres for a […]
Familiar Face in Tobacco Retires After three decades of serving the tobacco industry as both a tobacco specialist assisting Kentucky and Tennessee growers and soil scientist for the University of Tennessee and North Carolina State University, Paul Denton, Extension burley tobacco specialist, will retire at the end of May. “The most enjoyable part of my […]
While things get cooking in the greenhouse, our spring sun is coming out to melt winter’s chill from the fields, readying them for 2013’s season. In this issue, we cover some hot topics to help you get warmed up for the year. Many of you got a jump start on the season by attending Good […]
