Trabezond 92 and Samsun 85

[TigerTom]

More questions, yay!

Ok, so a couple seasons ago, I bought some tobacco seeds on eBay from a seller in Russia. They came in sealed commercial packs, so they aren't home-grown seeds (the company that produced them is Gavrish Seeds). The varieties are (transliterates from Russian) Trabezond 92 and Samsun 85.

Anyone know anything about these?

And I get a bit confused about the Trabezond, aside from the spelling variations (Trebizond, Trabzon, Trabezond, etc.), is origin. According to this two part article https://dutchpipesmoker.wordpress.com/tag/dubek/ there are regions in both Greece and Turkey with the same name, but different tobaccos.

Is there any way to tell which one I may have?

-Tom

 

[deluxestogie]

Ancient Trapezus was a Greek city, later called Trebizond. At one time, Greeks controlled much of Anatolia. Trapezus today is known as Trabzon. It's still in the same location--the north eastern corner of Anatolia (Turkey). I've never heard of a place in today's Greece with the name of Trabzon or Trebison, or any of the various permutations of the spelling.

So, you've got two related Turkish varieties: Samsun and Trabzon. The number designations likely relate to introduced resistance to some tobacco disease or other.

It would be interesting to see the two growing side by side, for comparison of size, color, strength, aroma, etc.

Bob

 

[TigerTom]

Ah, world history not taught in American schools. Thanks for the education.

Because the seed count per pack is so low, I am planting three or four plants of each this season to increase my seed stock and also just evaluate the plants overall. I'll report the results on the forum and I can send some seeds your way when they are ready.

 

[deluxestogie]

Be sure to bag everything that's not topped.

Bob

 

[TigerTom]

Be sure to bag everything that's not topped.

Bob

I will. I have a lot of active bugs around here in the summer, so I have to bag everything anyway if I want to save seeds.

Any recommended cloth? I can use small cloth bags for tomatoes and peppers, but I don't yet have anything big enough for tobacco flower heads.

 

[deluxestogie]

For years now, I have exclusively used Agribon AG-15: https://www.johnnyseeds.com/tools-s...bon+-ag-15-118"-x-50-insect-barrier-9057.html [I buy this stuff by the 250' roll.]

I sew the bags myself (30"h x 24"w for standard size tobacco, and 24"h x 15"w for Orientals), and stitch a Tyvek tag into the side seam, for labeling it with a Sharpie. I hold the bags in place with a tied nylon string around the stalk. Also, I spray the bud head with permethrin just prior to bagging, in order to kill any budworms that might emerge within the bag.

Agribon is a spun polyester fabric that breathes well, does not retain heat, and does not get too heavy when wet. Sometimes I use it as a floating row cover to cover my beds immediately after transplant, if the birds are swiping the little plants for nesting material.

Bob

 

[TigerTom]

Thank you for the detailed write-up!