Growing and Processing Tobacco

Concerning the survival aspect.

Outside of being a black-market item that can be used almost like currency (think cigarettes in prison), I also have been growing it for and using it as an insecticide. It works really well on hornets and wasps and I have been using it on the pests that attack the hops and other garden plants. It doesn't affect Japanese beetles that I could tell, but it will kill most bugs fairly quickly.

a reply to: TheMichiganSwampBuck

Nobody in the UK MSB would have a clue what you are growing especially if it can reach 8 foot high they would simply assume it is weeds , what temperature do they need and how long is the growing season ? .

a reply to: stonerwilliam

It will require about a six to seven-month growing season to seed, but you could harvest it in five without getting any seed from it. It doesn't get excessively hot in Michigan during the growing season here and I noticed the the plants can handle the cold in late fall. Light frost wouldn't do anything, but a freeze would be enough to kill it. So I'd say it doesn't need to be subtropical to grow it.

ETA: The lower leaves get big like the elephant ear plant. The whole plant is kind of conical-shaped. I think it looks pretty good as a decorative plant. Average height is more like five or six feet unless you use a lot of fertilizer, then it could get as tall as eight feet.

First bacci patch next the chookyard. About 20 feet by 10 feet. Plants are about 4 foot tall.


Leaves drying in back shed. The yellow leaves are the first pick. The green are the second.


I used plastic brush-cutter cord with the end cut on an angle to create a sharp point. Then threading the leaves on that.

a reply to: stonerwilliam

Far up Scotland? It might be worth checking your hardiness zone and consider artificially extending your growing season, I'm guessing for us south facing is a must whilst we start as early as possible.

I was pricing up last minute holidays to Spain and Eastern Europe a few months ago... Even with keeping to the 250g allowance a weekend away would have you saving about 30% and there's a good chance you'll get a tan too

I would say growing wise a poly tunnel or greenhouse won't go amiss, paraffin heaters are fairly cheap too.

Btw where did you get your seeds? I'll give this a go

Cheers for posting this thread SwampBuck!

a reply to: TheMichiganSwampBuck

Tobacco has always been used as a pesticide too.

If tshtf people like me will need it as a natural mosquito repellant!
It was also sprayed on crops to keep the bugs away.

Natural gardeners have long known about using a combination of chewing tobacco/garlic to keep bugs away.

Just a word of caution. BE really careful about growing tobacco near things you eat as the leaves can be quite poisonous!!!!!!

a reply to: RAY1990

Far north or the freezer as some call it minus 8 last night where I stay . I got my seeds of eBay and they are cheap for a 1000 it was only a few quid and this seems like a good little investment for the future .

I saw a article in the daily mail about flying abroad to get duty free being cheaper than buying at home so that is on the cards , and maybe sending a box by mail ? Or go on a bus trip ? .

The poly tunnel idea is dodgy for me with the winds we can get from nowhere and the swings in the weather can also be sudden , I have seen the 4 seasons in one day a few times and minus 30 till late March , when I moved back here 10 years ago after living further south I opened the car door and thought wtf have I done .

a reply to: NobodySpecial268

Earlier I posted some photos of growing and hanging my tobacco. Here is what I did with those leaves next.

After hanging for about a month and turning brown, I took the leaves and removed the central thick stem with a sharp knife and placed the leaves in cardboard boxes and tapped the box up fairly airtight. Then put the boxes in the pantry and forgot they were there for nearly two years.

The advice at the time was tobacco should be stored after drying for a year if possible, curing further over time. A less harsh smoke, apparently.

So, today I went and opened a box. The tobacco variety is called Golden Virginia.



Even after two years, the leaves are still soft and pliable. The cardboard box storage seems to have equalised the moisture through all the leaves, and maybe even absorbed the excess moisture if it were there. There are no signs of mould.

The photo below shows a spread out leaf with the central stem removed.



This is where I am up to.

Gotta go and buy some maple syrup and cocoa powder.

Get real Maple Syrup, that Aunt Jomomma crap is mostly high fructose corn syrup. Otherwise, molasses or brown sugar is better.

a reply to: TheMichiganSwampBuck

Ahh, thank you, proper molasses it shall be.

At least it's better than vaping. That stuff will give you popcorn lung.

I just picked this up somewhere ?

We had on our tobacco products what nicotine content was in it whether it was rolling tobacco or ready made cigarettes.

Then it vanished from the packaging all together, rumor has it that the firms are extracting the nicotine and selling it to the vaiping firms doubling there money .

Many unscrupulous MJ dealers are also doing the same thing in the UK , extracting the juice or shaking the plant inside a bag after it has been slightly frozen then selling it as normal .

I thought about trying to grow my own about 5 years ago but living in SE MN I didn't think we had a long enough growing season. I may need to rethink that now that I know you grow in MI.

I've been rolling my own for quite a while now and if I can grow my own it gets even cheaper. Subscribing to follow.

originally posted by: thov420
I thought about trying to grow my own about 5 years ago but living in SE MN I didn't think we had a long enough growing season. I may need to rethink that now that I know you grow in MI.

I've been rolling my own for quite a while now and if I can grow my own it gets even cheaper. Subscribing to follow.

The southeast corner of Minnesota is at the same parallel as I am, 43.5 degrees Lat. I imagine that the climate and habitat are nearly identical except for the weather I get from the westerly winds over Lake Michigan. That would make it a little wetter here and drier over your way, but very close otherwise.