Removing damaged leaves?

[Perequin]

Hello everyone,
So here in Sweden we have an invasive species of slug called a Spanish slug (in latin Arion vulgaris, a fitting name if you ask me) and they seem absolute deadly for tobacco plants. This morning I caught one casually chewing away on some of my plants.



As you can see he almost completely obliterated one leaf and was in the process of doing the same to the leaf on the left. Now to my question.
Should I remove the more damaged leaves to make the plant divert energy to the better ones? I think the one with a single large hole in it will probably still be usable maybe.
I also have some leaves that have been cracked at the midrib about half-way through, should I remove those? I have a feeling they won't make it all the way through to harvest.
I did remove the sucker I found as I took the photo at least.
Thanks!

/Erik

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

I would leave it. The rest of the leaf looks fine and it also shields the leaves above it from mud and is a distraction from other slugs.

 

[Danny M]

Leave them. Unless they wilt and die they’re still catching sun. Onto the next issue, it looks like you need some nitrogen, and maybe some other mineral supplements.

 

[deluxestogie]

I agree with both of the above comments. The lowest few leaves on any tobacco plant usually end up as trash, regardless of the care lavished on them.

If you look at the rich, green color of the sucker leaves in that photo, that is the color you should be seeing in the primary leaves. My guess is that either the plant has been over-watered, or the soil is nutrient deficient (or at a pH outside the optimal range for tobacco).

Bob

 

[Perequin]

Thanks a lot guys, I’ll just leave it then.

Yeah, we have been getting quite a lot of rain for the past two weeks, so that feels like it might be causing it in that case. I’ll get on that immediately and try to get some nutrients in there.

 

[Perequin]

Ok, so I put some chicken manure in the ground and watered it a little bit. Being unsure about the amounts, I threw in about two fistfuls per square meter. I realize I really need to read up on this whole soil/fertilizing business.
How long would you say that it usually takes for the leaves to start recovering after fertilizing, so I know if I’m on the right track?
It seems my Burley is doing the worst right now, and reading through some posts here it needs a bit more nitrogen than most as I understand it?

 

[Danny M]

Ok, so I put some chicken manure in the ground and watered it a little bit. Being unsure about the amounts, I threw in about two fistfuls per square meter. I realize I really need to read up on this whole soil/fertilizing business.
How long would you say that it usually takes for the leaves to start recovering after fertilizing, so I know if I’m on the right track?
It seems my Burley is doing the worst right now, and reading through some posts here it needs a bit more nitrogen than most as I understand it?

Cow manure isn’t that hot so it would be really hard to overdo it. I think it’s like 3% Nitrogen. I know it serves as the base for many of these organic fertilizers and they’re usually 3-1-1. If you did happen to overdo it, look up nutrient lockout. That will tell you how to diagnose your plants and make corrections. As for how long it will take for you to see results, that depends on the plant and how hungry it is. Without knowing your situation I’m just speculating. With the Burley, Ky has the climate and weather for it. Aside from that, they amend their soil with lime and nitrate, and then side dress with 9-18-27, some mix Ammonium Nitrate in the water if they need to jump start the plants during a dry period. For the most part however, we typically have about the right situation for tobacco without doing a whole lot.

 

[Knucklehead]

I have never grown organically but I located a couple of North Carolina State University articles. They look more like general guidelines than they do an in depth scientific study. Perhaps I’m missing a larger article.

This one is a download:

https://www.ces.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/2015-Organic-Tobacco-Production-Overview.pptx

Short article on organic fertilizer for seedlings:

Organic Tobacco: Better Ways to Get Off to a Good Start - College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Interest in organic tobacco farming has been growing in recent years, and at NC State University, researchers are taking the guessing game out of one of the most important steps in production: how best to fertilize seedlings.

cals.ncsu.edu

 

[Knucklehead]

Some more general chemical fertilizer recommendations from tobacco universities.

https://www.uky.edu/Ag/TobaccoProd/FactSheets/PDF/Revised%20Nitrogen%20Fertilizer%20Recommendations%20for%20Tobacco.pdf

https://darktobacco.ca.uky.edu/files/tobaccofertility.pdf

Fertility - Nutrients

Nitrogen Nitrogen (N). Nitrogen has a greater effect on tobacco yield and quality than any other nutrient. Too little nitrogen reduces yield and results in pale, slick cured leaf. Too much nitrogen may increase yield slightly but may also make mechanical harvesting and curing more difficult...

tobacco.ces.ncsu.edu

 

[Danny M]

Some more general chemical fertilizer recommendations from tobacco universities.

https://www.uky.edu/Ag/TobaccoProd/FactSheets/PDF/Revised%20Nitrogen%20Fertilizer%20Recommendations%20for%20Tobacco.pdf

https://darktobacco.ca.uky.edu/files/tobaccofertility.pdf

Fertility - Nutrients

Nitrogen Nitrogen (N). Nitrogen has a greater effect on tobacco yield and quality than any other nutrient. Too little nitrogen reduces yield and results in pale, slick cured leaf. Too much nitrogen may increase yield slightly but may also make mechanical harvesting and curing more difficult...

tobacco.ces.ncsu.edu

I think without reading that the difficulties excessive nitrogen would produce would be brittle leaves and stalks wanting to split. I know most crank the nitrate to it and I’ve not seen many experience too many problems. Something I’ve pondered is using this 9-18-27 or even 5-10-15, to me it really makes no sense since you’re not growing blooms in most cases.

 

[Knucklehead]

I think without reading that the difficulties excessive nitrogen would produce would be brittle leaves and stalks wanting to split. I know most crank the nitrate to it and I’ve not seen many experience too many problems. Something I’ve pondered is using this 9-18-27 or even 5-10-15, to me it really makes no sense since you’re not growing blooms in most cases.

From reading one of the articles the nutrient recommendations are also influenced by economic, social, and environmental concerns.

 

[Perequin]

From reading one of the articles the nutrient recommendations are also influenced by economic, social, and environmental concerns.

That last link was really helpful as a guide for what the different deficiencies look like. It also tipped me off that the uptake rate can be as long as 3 weeks. Thank you for taking the time to find it!
I think I’ll just start adding nitrogen regularly every two weeks or so from now on.

 

[Perequin]

If you did happen to overdo it, look up nutrient lockout. That will tell you how to diagnose your plants and make corrections.

Read up a bit on nutrient lockdown which also mentioned incorrect ph to be a possible cause for it, which is also what deluxestogie mentioned.
So today I bought a ph meter.
My soil had a ph of 6.5, which is far from optimal but also not a complete disaster?
I think I need to find a way to try and lower it.
I gave the plants a shot of nettle water today all the same, and I’ll leave them alone for a week or two and see how they do.

 

[Knucklehead]

That last link was really helpful as a guide for what the different deficiencies look like. It also tipped me off that the uptake rate can be as long as 3 weeks. Thank you for taking the time to find it!
I think I’ll just start adding nitrogen regularly every two weeks or so from now on.

More images with diagnostics for nutrient deficiencies:

Tobacco Diagnostic Key | p1 | NC State