How to dry tobacco correctly and quickly at home, collection

Many people grow their own tobacco and use it to smoke. However, this is not enough to simply harvest the shoots and leaves. To get the desired product, it is important to correctly assess the readiness of the leaves, harvest and carry out a number of activities with it. Therefore, it is necessary to figure out how to dry tobacco. This process has a number of nuances and features.

When to harvest tobacco

Smoking tobacco matures in stages. This process starts from the lower leaves and moves up. The first lower tier is allowed to be cut off 40-45 days after planting - at the stage of the appearance of flower buds. After the same period of time, it is permissible to collect the next tier.

Each bush can include 4-8 tiers. They need to be prepared one by one. Experts advise picking only those leaves that are at the stage of technical maturity. Only in this case they accumulate the required amount of nicotine.

The following indicates the maturity of tobacco leaves:

• leaves become denser and sticky;
• leaves change color from light yellow to yellow green;
• light spots form on the petiole - this is how starchy clusters look;
• the edges of the leaf blades become wavy and fall to the ground - while the lower leaves may be devoid of spots;
• petiole easily detaches;
• by evening, ripe leaves do not rise to the stem, but are arranged horizontally.

For garden use, it is permissible to collect a little overripe raw materials.At the same time, its efficiency decreases after drying. This is due to the lack of nicotine. Overripe foliage has a less dense texture and a yellow color. Brown spots may be present on its surface.

Harvesting Features

To reduce the drying time, the foliage must be collected in the evening. This is done in dry weather - before the evening dew falls. To collect raw materials, you need to gently press on the petiole and separate the leaf blade from the branch. At the same time, it should break off with a click. If it doesn't, the tobacco is not mature enough.

The fragments of bushes affected by parasites are separated at all stages of maturity. They can be used for composting or fumigating fruit plants.

To get tobacco powder, the shoots of the plant are allowed to be cut off completely.This is done at the stage of maturation of the bulk of the leaves. Tobacco stems contain less nicotine. They also contain more nutrients. Therefore, this type of raw material can be used as top dressing.

Preparation of raw materials

The key step in preparing tobacco for further processing is languishing. During this procedure, the raw material loses 20% of moisture. At this stage, the destruction of starch occurs, the leaves turn yellow, and the nicotine content increases. As a result of languishing, the resistance of the product to the appearance of mold increases.

The essence of the procedure is quite simple. In this case, you need to hold the collected foliage at a temperature of + 20-40 degrees. You need to increase the parameters gradually. It is important to languish raw materials at high humidity. It should be 80-90%.

You can burn tobacco in the following ways:

1. In heaps or harmans. At the same time, the harvested crop must be spread out on a wet floor, forming elongated piles. It is important to provide good ventilation in the room. After a day, the foliage will begin to produce heat. It needs to be turned over regularly to avoid rotting. After 3-4 days, the process can be completed.
2. In low. In this case, you need to take a long needle and string the leaves on a cord, compact them and hang them in the barn. It is important to ensure that the tobacco does not dry out. This requires access to moisture. When changing the shade of the workpiece, you should immediately remove it.
3. In the dryer. For this purpose, pipe-burning dryers are used. Initially, the procedure is carried out at low temperatures, but gradually increase them. Subsequently, the raw materials are dried until cooked.

When the leaves completely or 2/3 change their shade, the process must be stopped immediately. The easiest way is to get rid of the remnants of the juice. To do this, you need to start the drying process.

How to dry at home

Tobacco can be dried using different methods. It is important to process stewed leaves that have lost their green tint.

Sunny

Prepared tobacco normally perceives sunlight. It can be dried outside near the house, on the balcony or on the windowsill. If air humidity increases, raw materials need to be brought into the room.

To properly dry tobacco, do the following:

• put the leaves on thick cardboard;
• leave at +25 degrees;
• start drying, periodically turning the leaves.

Tobacco is recommended to dry, laying it out in 1 layer. Otherwise, this process will take several weeks.

Shadow (air)

This method is considered more convenient. When using it, the raw material does not need to be hidden from the rain. This uses a higher temperature. The essence of the method is simple. To do this, just put the tobacco on a horizontal surface. In the early days it needs to be checked and turned over. Then the raw materials are recommended to be dried until cooked.

Fire

In production conditions, pipe-firing machines are used. First, the raw materials are tormented, and then they proceed to drying. Previously, coals were used at home. At the same time, the leaves were laid out on grates and placed over burnt-out fires.

Now this method is not used. It does not allow you to accurately calculate the temperature. When raw materials are overheated, dark spots form. In addition, portions of coals need to be added all the time.

If coals are left from the fire, you need to slightly warm the workpiece, which is dried in the sun. To do this, you need to put foil down. This procedure will speed up the process. In addition, the leaves will be saturated with fragrant smoke.

Steam drying

This method is used in industrial environments and helps to dry tobacco quickly. For its implementation, special metal pipes are used. They deliver steam according to the set program.

At home, some people try to use a steamer or pots of boiling water. However, these methods do not make much sense. To achieve the desired results, it is important to regularly apply a moderate amount of water.

Tobacco bush drying

To dry tobacco with a bush, it is recommended to string it on a string and place it in special frames under the sun's rays. In this case, the distance between plants should be 4-5 millimeters.

How to determine the degree of readiness, what leaves should turn out

Dried tobacco leaves are light brown or dark brown. In addition, they crumble in the fingers. The leaves of such tobacco have fragile veins that break rather than bend. At the same time, a pleasant tobacco aroma is considered the best sign of readiness. The overdried foliage is covered with black spots and has a pungent odor.

How to dry tobacco after fermentation

Tobacco fermentation increases the amount of free nicotine in it.To do this, the crushed foliage is folded into a glass container and poured with alcohol or vinegar. Then the jar is shaken and left for a week in a dark place. After the specified time, the leaves are taken out and dried in the air.

Drying tobacco can be carried out by different methods, which differ in labor intensity and efficiency. This gives each person the opportunity to choose the most suitable option.

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