Yield and Value of Burley 21 Tobacco as Influenced by Nitrogen Nutrition, Suckering Practice, and Harvest Date

An experiment was conducted in the field during 1966 on Maury silt loam soil to obtain information of the effects of agronomic factors on yield and value of Burley 21 tobacco . Ammonium nitrate fertilizer at varying rates, and concentrated super-phosphate and potassium sulfate at constant rates , were broadcast and disked in after plowing and before transplanting. All plots received irrigation water (sprinkler system) to supplement rainfall when soil moisture dropped below 60% of available moisture-holding capacity. Sucker control practices utilized were (a) no topping - no suckering, (b) topping - no suckering, (c) topping - hand suckering, and (d) topping - MH-30. Half of the tobacco was harvested early (about 1 week prior to maturity) and half late (1 week past maturity) . However, N fertilizer at the 400 lb/ acre N rate delayed maturity about 2 weeks beyond that for tobacco treated at the 100 and 200 N rates . Thus all the early harvests were made 1 week prior to maturity, the 100- and 200-lb N treated plots 2 weeks later, and the 400-lb N plots 4 weeks after the early harvest