ID-160: Burley and Dark Tobacco Production Guide, 2023-2024

Andy Bailey, Ric Bessin, Lowell Bush, Ann Fisher, J.D. Green, Bill Pearce, Edwin Ritchey, Wayne Sanderson, Will Snell | Jan. 17, 2023 (Major Revision)

The 2022 season will be remembered as a year of extremes in weather patterns. Early in the field season, 2022 brought extreme drought and heat during transplanting in May and June followed by excessive rainfall in July in some areas. These conditions led to growers making significant replanting decisions as transplant shock was very widespread. There was a return of extremely dry conditions in August that extended through nearly the entire curing season. It was the driest field conditions that most burley and dark tobacco growers have experienced since 2012, and the driest curing season that many growers could recall. 2022 further emphasized the importance of access to irrigation to sustain the tobacco crop through extended dry periods in the field, as well as tight barns that allow management of air-flow to moderate the effects of dry curing seasons.