Masters Theses

Date of Award

12-1965

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Major

Agronomy

Major Professor

Henry Andrews

Committee Members

H.C. Smith, R.S. Dotson

Abstract

To produce an acre of either hurley or fire-cured tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) in Tennessee, 350 to 450 man hours of labor are required. Of the total, 20 to 30 man hours per acre are normally required for cultivations and hoeing (29). The actual time involved depends upon weediness and the relative effectiveness of the cultivation. Often these hoeings and cultivations result in root damage, disease transmission, and leaf injury which may reduce the yield and quality of the cured leaf.

Parris (28) estimated that tobacco growers in Tennessee experience a loss of $1,350,000 annually due to weeds. This loss estimation includes only the cost of weed control in plant beds and the loss of yield in field tobacco. Factors such as loss due to extra land preparation were excluded. This figure could be lowered if more effective and efficient means of weed control could be developed.

Research in the area of chemical weed control on field grown tobacco has been accelerated in an effort to decrease man hours required so as to lower the production cost. This would make it possible for domestic American tobaccos to compete with tobacco grown in other regions of the world on a more equal footing (23). If the per acre production cost could be lowered enough, some corresponding decrease in the gross dollar returns might prove more tolerable to the growers. This can be especially true in instances where disease is a problem and where a minimum of soil and plant contact or translocation may be desired.

The objectives of this study were to determine:

1) by visual ratings the relative effectiveness of three selected herbicides upon the growth of weeds in tobacco;

2) the effects of the herbicides upon the yield and quality of tobacco; and

3) the most effective of the herbicides tested for use in the production of hurley and dark fire-cured tobacco.

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