I Liz,
I have grown my own tobacco organically just for my own use on a very small
scale for years. The only problem I have encountered pestwize are slugs.
They love the young seedlings. And they also like to hide in a straw mulch
by day.
I solve this problem by growing seedlings on in pots until they are a fair
size (this may be hard to do on a commercial scale) and by using a wood
shaving - sawdust mulch that slugs dislike. (this is said to rob nitrogen
from the soil. But if you do it for a few years this problem if any
disappears)
John
----- Original Message -----
From: Liz Pike <pike@always-online.com>
To: sanet <sanet-mg@ces.ncsu.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, May 31, 2000 1:15 AM
Subject: sustainable tobacco
> Can tobacco be a sustainable crop?? I'm scouting it this year for a
friend
> who owns a crop service and I'm appalled at the practices used to raise
this
> crop that many sustainable farmers would never use on their farms. Basic
> concepts such as mulching to protect from soil borne disease go undone,
> while spraying for pests that kill off beneficials is commonplace.
>
> Since the government has intervened (note: in a crop that's perfectly
legal
> to grow), the amounts planted have been reduced in my area by 50%. This
is
> a hardship for many of the farmers as it is their "big" money crop. I
have
> had a few ask for advice on growing it sustainably, decreasing the cost of
> raising it.
>
> Liz Pike
> Morningstar Gardens
> Pollocksville NC
> ICQ 46954468
>
>
>
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