North Carolina Puffer: @ChuckWagon

[ChuckWagon]

The nostalgia finally settled in, so I began my journey of growing tobacco as my father did before me. I was just a helping hand around 9-12 yrs old. Enjoyed watching him survey the plants as they matured. The garage became crowded with leaves, all upside down. Never understood the whole process.

This will be my first harvest. My seedlings are now 5' tall, except my Havana's, and I have a few budding for pods.

I harvested my first 3 bundles this weekend and desperately searched for a forum to learn from.
This forum was highly recommended so I'm glad to be here and share my experiences and learn from others .
Thank you gentlemen.
Cheers
ChuckWagon.

 

[deluxestogie]

Welcome to the forum. Read the New Growers' FAQ, linked in the menu bar. You may wish to scan through the topics in our Index of Key Forum Threads, also linked in the menu bar.

Bob

 

[Alpine]

Welcome to FTT

pier

 

[ChuckWagon]

Welcome to the forum. Read the New Growers' FAQ, linked in the menu bar. You may wish to scan through the topics in our Index of Key Forum Threads, also linked in the menu bar.

Bob

Will do Bob

 

[GreenDragon]

Welcome to the Forum! We have a lot of fun here. Also, we love pictures (hint hint). What varieties are you growing and what are your goals?

 

[ChuckWagon]

Virginia Gold and Havana.
As for goals, learning what process to undergo and knowing when to prime. Air dry seems to be the easy route, but will also give fermenting a shot by stacking.

If I have something palatable to smoke, like a cigar, pipe and even roll my own, it's a W.
I tend to lean on the naturals/burley for my enjoyment. So, trying to keep it simple as a novice.

I'm surrounded by red clay in the Carolinas, so garden soil and mulch had to be brought in. Dug into the ground a bit to allow drainage. We do have extensive heat this year so I topped-off with some more mulch to retain moisture. They seem to be doing well after the topsoil mulch mixture.

 

[GreenDragon]

Looking good! Don’t be afraid of the clay there. It’s full of good minerals and it’s fairly neutral to acidic. Augment with some 10-10-10. Lived in Charlotte for 5 years and always mixed the clay into my mulch/top soil raised beds with good results. I air cured all my tobacco as I’m too lazy to build a kiln. Buy a couple pounds of red and lemon VA from WLT to add some sweetness to your blends. A hot attic is a cheap way to age/ferment your leaf.

 

[jclif43]

Welcome!

 

[ChuckWagon]

Looking good! Don’t be afraid of the clay there. It’s full of good minerals and it’s fairly neutral to acidic. Augment with some 10-10-10. Lived in Charlotte for 5 years and always mixed the clay into my mulch/top soil raised beds with good results. I air cured all my tobacco as I’m too lazy to build a kiln. Buy a couple pounds of red and lemon VA from WLT to add some sweetness to your blends. A hot attic is a cheap way to age/ferment your leaf.

Agreed. I did mix in the clay for the added minerals & that was tough part, breaking down that clay. I'm in the Concord area, just N of Charlotte. The growing seasons are amazing here. Currently my attic is stringed with a few bundles, so I'm with ya on using my attic space and not just for Christmas ornaments.
I'm about to turn into my smoke room with a box fan during winter time.

I have starters that I'll be dropping in the ground soon. Hopefully I can harvest in the fall before the frost settles in. We'll see how that goes.