Do different strains look different when matured?

[Briyo2289]

I started 6 varieties by seed and the labels in the seed trays got moved, so now that I'm transplanting, I don't know which is which. If I plant them all so that like is by like, but I don't know what is what, will I be able to figure it out once they mature?

My varieties are Black Sea Samson, Shirey, Virginia Gold, Cherry Red, Golden Burley, and Burley 21.

Thanks. Trying not to get too discouraged as my first year of tobacco is already not going well...

 

[deluxestogie]

Samsun is easy, with its leaf petioles (mostly bare leaf stem). The two burleys should be distinctive, compared to the flue-cure varieties, but between the two burley's you may or may not see a difference. The three flue-cured varieties may not be easily distinguishable from one another. The good news is that handling them (Samsun, burley vs flue-cured) is the same within each of those three groups. Sun-cure the Samsun; air-cure the burleys; flue-cure the others.

The Bad news is that you should not save seed from any of these but the Samsun (no biggie), since you would just end up with mystery seed.

Bob

 

[skychaser]

You got your labels mixed up? No one here has ever done that before! ahem.. Ok maybe once or twice, or 20 times before. Welcome to the club.

Like Bob said, the Samsun should be pretty easy. The Shirey is a dark Virginian and has much darker leaves that hang down more than Cherry Red or Virginia Gold. Those two will be the hardest to tell apart. I'm growing Cherry Red again this year and have grown Virginia Gold many times, so I'm fairly sure I can tell them apart when they are nearing maturity. Burley 21 and Golden Burley look quite different. Grown them both several times and am growing Burley 21 again this year. It will be taller and more column like in plant form. The leaves are darker and ripen later than Golden Burley. Burley 21 can get 8' tall. GB usually gets 5'-6' high and has much longer and narrower and more upright leaves. And it starts to mature earlier. The leaves will turn a light golden yellow when it starts to mature. GB is one of my favorites. Very easy to cure when stalk cut and hung whole and makes some really pretty leaf if you want to prime and string it. It's smokable in 3-4 months without kilning. Burley 21 needs to age much longer. 6 months minimum. 9 is even better. It is a very old heirloom strain going back over 200 years. But mine has always produced as well as much more modern strains.

Cheers,

 

[Briyo2289]

That's great to hear. Thanks for the responses.