The tobacco passes a long way to the cigarettes trade.
After five to six weeks, the 16 to 18 centimeter high seedlings come from the seedbed to the fields where there is enough space to develop to their full height of up to two meters. The plant also needs constant intensive care. So the crust of the earth has to be loosened again and again so that the roots are supplied with enough oxygen. The tobacco needs two to three months to mature in the field. The degree of ripeness and the right time for harvest can be recognized by the color of the leaves and their cell structure.
Every tobacco needs care for the future cigarettes UK trade.
Burley tobacco differs from its «conspecifics» in one important point:
It is the only tobacco that is harvested as a whole plant and only in large growing areas. In contrast, with Virginia and Orient tobacco the lower leaves are always plucked so that they are in several Harvest time is always midsummer, when the sun unfolds its full power.
However, the harvest of the tobacco leaves begins in the early hours of the morning before sunrise.
The drying of the tobacco
Tobacco is not just tobacco, it passes a long way to the cigarettes trade.
Each variety therefore requires a very special type of drying:
Sun curing
After a short pre-drying process, oriental tobacco is stretched leaf
by leaf on long strings and hung in an airy place, mostly in the sun.
The tobacco garlands then need about four weeks to dry during the so-called «sun curing».
Flue curing
Virginia tobacco, on the other hand, is processed with tube drying, known as «flue curing»: The leaves are hung in a drying shed and hot air is blown around them, which is passed through a system of tubes.
Overall, the procedure takes four to seven days. The process must be thoroughly run to create the high-quality cigarettes that are necessary for the successful cigarettes trade.