Posted on 06/21/2005 8:25:15 AM PDT by RandallFlagg
Since I have to get to bed, I'm just going to paste what I placed into the coffinnails.com forum. There's relevant questions inclused that I'll place on this thread if they get answered.
Day one -finally got my seeds!
Them things are SMALL! Sheesh! I had to fuzzy up the end of a Q-Tip to place them into the trays. Before I screw things up, there's a few questions I must ask. The 200 seeds I got are Dark Virginia. I'm doing 16 at a time.
Will the unused seeds keep for a while? I'd like to grow 'em in staggered stages. Will regular tap water work, or will I have to use distilled or rainwater? I have to used that kind for my Venus's Flytraps. Flourescent lighting. Will it work well for staggered stage growing year-round? Humidity? Someone told me that nicotine is a natural insect repellant. Is this true? Has anyone here saved the $$$ they expected to save? That's why I'm doing this. What's the best soil to use?
Luckily, there's a big place near my home called Paulino's Gardens, where I can find almost all the accessories I need for this venture of mine. I'll update on this thread as I go along.
OH! First entry: Got seeds three days ago and placed them on top of potting soil in 16-cube icetray container with holes in the bottom. Placed trays in my carnivorous plant terrarium that uses three 15-watt flourescent bulbs on a 18-hour timer. Sprayed and soaked with rainwater. Crossing my fingers.
Last question for the day: How long should it be before something actually grows?
Explain again how one saves money by taking hours and hours to grow their own?
Interestingly, I make the malt for Coors. Germination is part of the job. We germinate the grain for five days in our 48 beds.
I was aware of the careful handling of the tomatoes after smoking. In fact I was just reading something about that yesterday, soemthing in the cigarette tobacco actually promotes the virus, IIRC.
I can understand your grandfather's reasoning about the tomatoes since the Tobacco was the cash crop.
I'm keeping my fingers tightly crossed that we don't have as wet a summer as we did last year - most of my tomatoes drowned, and I had 65 plants.
Yes, I went to the stuffyourown.com link SheLion has been posting.
Thanks for the tip!
The same way one saves money growing any type of crop for personal consumption. And there is also the personal satisfaction of having produced ones own.
Only someone that does much gardening understand the satisfaction of it. By the time my garden is fully worked I will have close to 200 tomatoe, 150 pepper, 300 square feet of beans, and several hundred assorted other plants - not including corn and possibly tobacco.
Beat me to it.
No kidding? Now that would be fantastic.
I could handle that kind of job :)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's an absolute no brainer to me when it comes to growing many types of things.
I don't do flowers as a rule, I've got some, but they were already part of the landscaping when we bought this place. To me the satisfaction of having fresh vegetables on the table, or homemade jelly or hot sauce is worth the hours of labor in the garden.
and speaking of the garden, I need to start thinking of getting my butt out of this chair and getting to work :) But I still have laundry going so I have a little bit longer before I get out there.
Pays great, but I'm a whiskey man.
Where did you get the seeds?
I understand the satisfaction part but it doesn't translate to savings. Justify the endeavor because its nice to achieve something and possibly get a better fresher tobacco, but don't kid yourself its cheaper.
Take the same labor hours and multiply it by the persons potential income from another activity and it cannot translate to savings.
In addition to labor, there are hidden costs. Water, electric, pots, fertilizer, pest control, the cost of a shed for drying plus property taxes on it. All of these are costs.
Heh! Like I was yesterday morning:
"Last post. Gotta get to bed."
"Seriesly. Last post."
etc, etc....
Tobacco was grown in the streets of Jamestown in colonial America, and commonly used in lieu of hard money.
LOL!!!
I'm a beer girl myself - and love ice cold Coors draft!!!!
Not to butt in here, but, isn't this the same logic that tells us to buy vegetables from Mexico?
I grow tobacco because I like doing so. I get a superior and clean product, that is probably worth about $30.00 a pack. Since it is not for sale, it is all mine.
Imagine, me, a poor farmer, siting back and enjoying a $5.00 cigarette with a glass of home made (easily worth $100.00 a glass) Blackberry wine.
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