This is typically the culprit. It was a good shot at it though! Answer: Let them become almost dry but not brittle, take out the middle rib and any others that are large (who wants to smoke ribs?) Ive a venture that I am just now running on, and Ive been on the look out for such information. You can store the leaves in a humidor or even in a plastic bag. Put it in a pipe and it smoked fine. The same regulations govern brewing, winemaking, and the distilling of alcoholic beverages. Very educational. Then, thread a string through the slits. I have smoked for over thirty years and have been growing tobacco for two seasons. The fermentation cooler I built is, in my humble opinion, is a very cheap and affordable chamber for the home enthusiast. Spread the leaves out so they're at least 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart to give them plenty of space to dry. It depends on what you want the tobacco for. Stand the container in a dish so that you can water it without soaking the carpet. After drying the leaves then adding flavour such as vodka and then slicing/cutting would I store the tobacco in a air tight container? Answer: I've never struck that problem, and it hasn't been mentioned before, so it's probably not an issue. This would be those with the traditional mason jar design. As you said, I leave the "Best/Biggest" plant to flower and take the seeds from it for the next season- tho of course you only need one seed pod to get 1000's of tiny seeds for next year's crop. 7 years ago There are several websites dealing with curing chambers and the standard home made type is made of foam wall insulation and an oil heater. Don't humidify kiln to prevent rusty lids. Thank you for posting this. I did miss a stage in my above aromatic observationsbetween the wet grass and raisin stage there was a strong cereal smell..like toasted corn flakes, which probably lasted for the entire 2nd week. The dried leaves will be slightly sticky, and theyll have the feeling of very thin leather. Answer: You can surely use a humidifier and see how it goes. I better still be alive for the first finished product lol. I got tired of fighting past the damn things to get to my garden shed and pulled them out last May, still healthy and hardy, with a root system the size of a football. Answer: Spray it with a fine mist of water (or water and alcohol - port, vodka, rum; or water and something sweet) You can get a cheap mister in most garden supply shops and a lot of discount places. Many thanks. A fine mist to dampen the leaves is all you need, they will soften almost immediately and you can then cut out the ribs. Answer: Most of my friends who grow tobacco just dry it before smoking it, so no, don't bother. Do I have to ferment the leaves at all? Im wanting either a mild hazlenut or chocolate flavor. Plant them in reasonably rich, well-dug soil (with well-composted vegetable matter if you've got it). The Old Firm (author) from Waikato/Bay Of Plenty, New Zealand on July 30, 2014: Drying- Three months will do it, less if you give a bit of a boost with a slightly warm oven. The warm, dry days and cool, relatively humid nights of the late summer and early fall provide the perfect conditions for drying tobacco leaves. Before starting here's a small note of discretion: Typically tobacco growing hobbyist raise and cure these plants for the pure enjoyment of taking care of this fast growing monster! The end result looked like nice moist almost store bought tobacco. It's a bit late now to plant outdoors, but you can probably start your seedlings in the hothouse, or better still in little pots on a warm windowsill (Like in the kitchen) . If you feel that yours is too green(and limp) still, try putting some in an oven at a low heat (100c or less) for half an hour or more to dry it to a better colour. I want to try it. i think il try the box with water in and a towel on top after iv dry the tobacco this year.. only using a heat pad. Adding moisture to cure is not a good idea, the bud should be dried properly first. If you do have problems, see your local nurseryman or talk to a friend who gardens. meter for the next hour or so. Trying to beat the election and all the false promises. It's half a keg with a bin lid and a light globe for heat. After fermentation (kilning), tobacco aroma and taste may change significantly over a few days, with noticeable change becoming more subtle after that. Leaves that dry too fast may remain green. Question: Is it possible to grow tobacco plants in a pot rather than a garden? You may need to stand on something to do it! Here in New Zealand, nothing much seems to bug tobacco, either from above or below ground. , is there a any missing thing about process ? Answer: You could try packing small lots at a time in vacuum-sealed plastic bags. Jars can also be an alternative to cellaring in the tin. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. x3' high lined with 1 1/2" styrofoam 3 100w heaters in bottom controlled by cookerstat,fed in moist air from a humidifier.Humidity 80% temp 120/130.Cured leaf for 4 weeks. I suggest that you then roll up the leaves and slice thinly with a very sharp knife. If you want cheap alcohol dissolve a kilo of sugar in 4 liters of warm water, dump in some yeast, or a handful of raisins/sultanas, cover the container with a tea-towel or similar to keep out the bugs and wild yeasts( or you'll end up with vinegar), leave it until it stops bubbling (probably 2-3 weeks) and you'll end up with alcohol at about 10%. I've had some specific varieties that were not particularly good until 18 months, In theory, could I just chuck my jars in say the hot water cupboard? keep swapping around until all golden brown (they will be damp but silky). He then cuts it and uses it straight away. Did you dry indoors? Growth will stop until the weather warms up, then continue, but the plants will be smaller. In terms of my fermentation chamber, there is no problems with overheating or meltingyet! Any concerns of the foam smell transferring to the tobacco?A: I know the foam smell you are talking about, Its an undeniable chemically semi-sweet smellI've experienced it in the past when using a hot wire to cut foam blocksno doubt very toxic! You too can join the ranks of tobacco plant enthusiasts and with some luck and planning, your efforts may be rewarded with a homegrown cigar! Some leaves are 500-600mm in length and still rather green. How does humidity affect the rate of fermenting? If so how do we do it? It's not exactly very warm here. Then proceed in one of the following ways: Further up the page, I suggested that you let one plant flower for seed. there seems to be a new trend in vaping lately as more people are the cost of cigarettes beyond their means and are turning to vaping, i grow my own tobacco and process it myself and have experimented (Mucked around in my kitchen) with 0% nicotine menthol e-juice by cutting my tobacco in an old electric coffee grinder and adding the e-juice bit by bit to the mix until i achieve the strength i desire.. It says it can be used for fermentation. You will need to make a platform inside the boiler to keep the leaves out of the water. After drying my iwn tobacco I put a little bourbon on it in a deep pot and roasted in oven at 50 degrees with a lid on. If it's just for the fun of growing the stuff and possibly to use the leaves to make a bug spray, a couple of plants will do fine. I think I'll give this a go - nothing to lose, all my hair is already goneand I might learn a thing or two! I got leaves as big as my face but im sure they could have been better. this is a couple of hours later.. its a little sweaty box now, Reply Subtract the one-time cost of the seed ($2.50 buys about 1,000 seeds at the shop down the road from me) and the price of the couple of cups of seed-raising mix and fertiliser you may have purchased. Thanks in advance. 11 years ago Answer: It should be okay in a large bucket. For three months of winter, we have occasional light frosts, bitterly strong winds, and some hail. Frankly, if you're regularly ingesting nicotine, traces of ammonia, if they exist, should be the least of your concerns,- and homegrown tobacco is a lot less dangerous than the commercial stuff. If they taste well enough without them fermenting do I still have to ferment them? From a broader perspective, there are a few variables that influence how tobacco ages. It depends on the tobacco, I guess. Soon, you'll notice that tobacco is quite an attractive ornamental with small, pretty, pink flowers. 3D Printed Futuristic Space Age Wall Clock. Within a few hours the sun begins to bleach it. The best temperatures for growing tobacco is 68 to 86 F (20 to 30 C). The Old Firm (author) from Waikato/Bay Of Plenty, New Zealand on September 13, 2014: The bowler hat brigade - too stupid to "do" so spend their lives telling us "not to do". That being said, so can drinking, singing off-key, eating too much (or not enough) meat, and so on. Temps above 122F (50C) inhibit the vegetative growth of mold. I realize the leaves are moist at first but after the moisture evaporates do you have to have any humidification device in there?A: yeah, as you can imagine, lamp is very similar to an oven, where the dry heat generated constantly takes away the humidity. Spent a few days in the horsepiddle with heart failure due to pneumonia; so am only growing for entertainment now as i had to stop smoking but it's still a way to pass the time. Does my curing chamber look like it will work? As good a way as any Rhett, nothings written in stone - adapt, innovate, do it on the cheap; that's what it's all about. Let . So, fermentation, do it if you want to, you may like the flavour better, you may not, I don't think that it matters a damn' for health and safety. (Haha.. Virginia tobacco, the stuff of commerce, is one of the hardiest plants you'll ever grow. Pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco, and snuff are fire cured. Put seed-growing mix or a mixture of fine soil and sand in a shallow container. Answer: Until the leaves are dry and brown/yellow, after hanging, several weeks or in an oven at low heat an hour or so. Fermentation is the limiting factor for hobbyist!3) Finally aging which we are all familiar with, which includes factory storage and storage in a humidor. This is a cheap and accessible possibility to achieve the conditions required for fermentation. The best way to do this is pictured on step 1, hang leaves to dry and let nature take its course: Gather your harvested green leaves, use a zip tie at the stems and bundle into 1-4 leaf bunches, (be sure to allow air between the leaves, if the leaves stick together, they will mold). The site loading pace is amazing. I suggest that you let only one of your plants go to flower for seeds for next season's crop. I turned out a first-class flake tobacco from some leaf that I'd left in a box in a corner of my garage for a year and forgotten about. Fill your curing jars 75% full. Question: I was wondering if I can take some larger leaves from my plants before they turn a paler green as I have planted my plants to close together. grown though through thirty years did need a lot more aging then actual curing.But I don't consider anything dead in a jar to be curing, this is aging in my book and curing takes place during the death of the living cells . ** This project was created last year (2008 harvest) to provide address a common question in the tobacco growing hobby, discussing the critical points of curing tobacco. on Step 5. sounds like the uneven curing is due to inconsistent humidity and too dry of an environment. I've settled on 1 week in the press for this experiment bracket, so unless I get an additional press, it'll take me 3 months to get all the 1 oz pressed samples underway. 3 years ago. Then I put the buds into 1 qt mason jars to cure. I'm doing it with potatoes. (It should reach full size without problems.). Hang the leaves somewhere dry and warm, like a garage or attic. The grow fast so don't start them too early, time it for the optimum outdoor transplant date. In addition, The contents are masterwork. It improves with age so long as it does not dry out. The Old Firm (author) from Waikato/Bay Of Plenty, New Zealand on November 07, 2015: Hi quicksand, long time no hear, How's it going? since taking the pics, I have modified and refined the design making it even simplerive plugged the holes, and took out the aluminum foil, and put the second batch of leaves in a large plastic bag with a twist tie on the top to better hold in the moisture. Do tobacco seeds need a period of cold dormancy in order to grow? The Old Firm (author) from Waikato/Bay Of Plenty, New Zealand on March 06, 2015: I chucked some seeds in the fridge last year; planted them in portable greenhouse in september and have a bumper crop drying in my garage now. Add the parts, tools needed to create the lids so they're air tight, medical grade silicone lines, manifolds, check valves, RH hygrometer, the grommets alone cost $50 for 10 (with a minimum . When they're about four inches high, and after the last of the frost, plant them out. Treat it as you would tomatoes. I have been using this for flavouring, this is a half strength as found the full strength to strong. The RH Lids have to be cut to exact specs with a Water Jet ($10k) or the hygrometer won't seal properly. As you know i don't smoke anymore, but gotta thank John Keye for the taxes, and the opportunity for extra income ( wink wink ), just follow the advice given here Jen, you cant go wrong, I gathered some seeds from a garden not knowing it was tobacco.They have grown amazingly.Thanks to your practical info I'm setting about drying the leaves .Might find a use for my grandads pipes in a rack yet .Thanks. I've been toying with the idea of growing my own tobacco for a year now and just found your site by looking for how to cure tobacco. this methored did not work the tobacco turned to compost in a few weeks.. to much humidity.. the way i would change it is having the inside tray highter and only puting a cloth over the top so air can escape.. i only put a small hole in the top and this was not enough. -Week 1-2 smells like wet grass. I used the barest pinch of seeds sprinkled into a six-pot seed tray and got over 100 plants! Most strains, though, will be good enough to smoke after two-three weeks, but the longer you leave the buds to cure, the better - four to eight weeks may be the optimal time. http://www2.ca.uky.edu/agcomm/pubs/agr/agr14/agr14.htm, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nygIskWSgw, https://www.leafonly.com/tobacco-harvesting-curing-fermenting.php, https://newsmaven.io/indiancountrytoday/archive/how-to-grow-and-cure-your-own-tobacco-for-ceremonial-use-Ok_7A46VfUqfDuXac7SoOQ/, https://www.coffinails.com/curing_tobacco.html, http://www.victoryseeds.com/tobacco/backer_cultivation.html, https://www.cigarworld.com/education/tobacco-411/curing-and-fermentation/, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKduAMF-lWk, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2EpXsM0m4o. Hello to all who read this and also to future me who is trying to figure out what I did that one time. My tobacco does not smell like tobacco at all. The Old Firm (author) from Waikato/Bay Of Plenty, New Zealand on July 05, 2016: The blog given to us has some exciting features. !, i want to ask you why? Be sure the leaves are protected from direct sunlight, which may burn them. The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers to this website may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. I threw a hand at it but it didnt come out the way I hoped. I joined the hub just to thank you.). Im thinking about purchasing and would like to hear some opinions. Trying to grow it here in the USA.if for no other reason to treat bee stings. Avoid over-watering. I hang dry my buds in a tent for at least 10 days, preferably longer with controlled humidity at around 60%. There's no smell of nicotine looks and the taste is like dried grass. 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