Curing conditions

[vktr]

The chlorophyll breakdown only occurs in the range of 15-40C (60-104F) according to different sources. What should the humidity be? Does the light play any role? My latest Aztec and Monte Calme Brun leaves refuse to yellow, just wilt green. Moved them from the garage (humid and cool) to the basement (worm and rather dry), will it help?

 

[The Haroo ln]

Humidity and temp should both be around 80-85% and 75f-85f for yellowing

 

[Knucklehead]

The chlorophyll breakdown only occurs in the range of 15-40C (60-104F) according to different sources. What should the humidity be? Does the light play any role? My latest Aztec and Monte Calme Brun leaves refuse to yellow, just wilt green. Moved them from the garage (humid and cool) to the basement (worm and rather dry), will it help?

I live in an area where the humidity rises and falls daily and nightly. I usually monitor my leaf by keeping a temp/humidity base in my house with a remote sensor near the leaf out in the shop or garage so even if the leaf and remote are out in them shop, I can glance at the base station in the house and know what is going on in the shop without trekking back and forth. I keep track in three day blocks of time and try to maintain an average of 70% over these three day blocks of time. For example, if humidity averages 80% at night and 60% during the day, the average is 70% humidity over a three day block of time. After three days, reset the clock.This gives me time to make corrections if there is a problem. I keep an eye on the weather forecast and if there is rain, I close up the shop to trap in the good humidity and turn on a fan in anticipation of the humidity climbing. If humidity is low during the day, I can leave the shop door open at night while humidity is higher, then close the door during the day so good humidity stays inside longer. I may have to wet the floor or suspend a towel out of a water bucket. Fans on when humidity is high, or bunch the leaf closer on the string when humidity is low and spread them apart when humidity is high with fans on. Curing and how you respond is totally dependent upon your climate and little micro climates in your area and the weather. Some areas the folks can just hang their leaf outside under and roof and not do anything year round, if I tried that I would have rotten moldy leaf. I have to fight the climate and use various methods to maintain proper humidity, including sometimes moving the leaf from the shop to the basement. After curing in the shop I dry the leaf and move it to the basement for storage with dehumidifiers running. If stems won't dry, I stack the leaf on seedling heat mats for stem drying. It just depends on where you live as to how much you have to battle the elements.

 

[deluxestogie]

An important determinant of the ease of color-curing tobacco is the stage of leaf senescence when harvested. If the leaf has matured well, then simply keeping the harvested leaf alive will allow coloring to proceed. If harvested too early, then coloring becomes difficult. As for specific temperature and humidity conditions, just consider the autumn coloration of tree leaves, despite uncontrolled, wildly varying conditions.

Bob

 

[johnny108]

I have no experience with Monte Calme Brun, but Aztec is a problem for everyone.
I had the best results with sun curing it.

 

[vktr]

I have no experience with Monte Calme Brun, but Aztec is a problem for everyone.
I had the best results with sun curing it.

This summer I used covered carton boxes under the sun to yellow Aztec leaves, then hang them in the garage. That worked fine. Then I tried just stock curing and that worked great. Now my second Aztec harvest won't yellow on the stock. Obvious reason is the weather, now it's much colder and raining outside. Monte Calme Brun leaves I primed at the end of summer air cured well but not now. Well, I hope I'll learn something from this fall curing... Thank you for the responses.

 

[Knucklehead]

An important determinant of the ease of color-curing tobacco is the stage of leaf senescence when harvested. If the leaf has matured well, then simply keeping the harvested leaf alive will allow coloring to proceed. If harvested too early, then coloring becomes difficult. As for specific temperature and humidity conditions, just consider the autumn coloration of tree leaves, despite uncontrolled, wildly varying conditions.

Bob

That's right. The rot problem I had was with leaf that hadn't dried completely and still had green stem and high humidity. The big mold disaster was when my dehumidifier in the basement conked out. I lost several pounds.

 

[vktr]

Some pictures, not very good but to illustrate what's happening. Aztec stock curing doesn't work anymore, the leaves turn green to brown and dry, the lower ones dry green. Most of them are still alive so curing is not out of question. To rescue them I had a little chat with chat gpt, and put the leaves in plastic bags and then into electric blanket. It will show in five days if this helps.

 

[vktr]

Well, this took me totally by surprise. Less that 24 hours in the bags in the blanket (30-40C, very high humidity) turned the Aztec leaves into this (see the picture). I think the leaves on the left have had enough. Monte Calme Brun leaves didn't change the color at all.

Judging from the familiar awful smell, I have the chlorophyll breakdown, but this time the smell is a little grassy. I wonder if you can enlighten me on what's happening to the leaves and if it's a good thing.

 

[ShiniKoroshi]

Perique?

 

[deluxestogie]

I wonder if you can enlighten me on what's happening

Umm...ChatGPT is happening.

Bob

 

[ShiniKoroshi]

"Cheap things are not good and good things are not cheap."

 

[vktr]

WTF people? If you don't have an answer just say so or remain silent.

 

[ShiniKoroshi]

WTF people? If you don't have an answer just say so or remain silent.

Your leaves have begun to rot because a pathogen entered through the open stoma while the leaf was wet and the temperature elevated.

 

[johnny108]

Well, this took me totally by surprise. Less that 24 hours in the bags in the blanket (30-40C, very high humidity) turned the Aztec leaves into this (see the picture). I think the leaves on the left have had enough. Monte Calme Brun leaves didn't change the color at all.

Judging from the familiar awful smell, I have the chlorophyll breakdown, but this time the smell is a little grassy. I wonder if you can enlighten me on what's happening to the leaves and if it's a good thing.

They look similar to my Sun cured crop.
Possibly darker from the higher temperatures and humidity.
They look fine to me.

 

[ShiniKoroshi]

Hope you're right but you must admit that plastic bagged tobacco under heat is a risky method. The cardboard boxes would have been a better choice but I would still have checked after 12 hours because tobacco sweat.

 

[vktr]

Leaves seem OK, leathery and no signs of rot. But I guess I'll know for sure when I smoke them. The same leaf in photos 1/2 and 3/4. Drying them out before hanging in the basement.

 

[Sergey Ukraine]

Why don't you want to string the sheet onto a thread? It's much easier to work with and takes up less space... like in the photo...

 

[vktr]

My threads are stationary so I don't string the leaves. I usually hang them in bundles but tried hanging the whole stock lately this year.

 

[ShiniKoroshi]

Leaves seem OK, leathery and no signs of rot. But I guess I'll know for sure when I smoke them. The same leaf in photos 1/2 and 3/4. Drying them out before hanging in the basement.

Looks good. Better pictures help. Hope these smoke ok.