tobacco seed

[Cornbelt]

Anybody know how long tobacco seeds will last?

[reliquary]

I just put some away, got a good deal at New Hope Seeds.  Google info says they "should" last "several years" if kept in a cool, dry place such as a fridge crisper drawer.  They recommended an airtight jar with humidity absorbent.
 
The site recommended that smaller seed such as tobacco NOT be kept in a freezer.

[Cornbelt]

Thanks, that's good to know. People don't like to be w/o a vice or two. Always has been a good trading commodity.

[charles p]

There are many type of tobacco around the world.  All are different, require different curing, aging, and storing techniques, and most every tobacco product is a blend of several types and flavorings.  Some is cured on the stalk (in the field or in a barn, and others are cured with heat.  It's not like canning tomatoes or shelling beans.  Not a do it yourrelf garden project.  You will likely end up with a very harsh product to chew or smoke.  All tobacco varieties I am familiar with are hybrids, thus if you plant their seeds you will probably get something from their past, and not what you intended.
You could get info from NC State University estension services.

[Cornbelt]

 Oh, I don't intend to utilize it myself. I tried making cigars once. "Harsh" doesn't do it justice. Also fed some to the neighbor kids telling them it was Chinese lettuce. (There are still some mothers who love me). And this was all good leftover plants from a tobacco farmer. If the good stuff is that bad, I won't care what the rot gut is like. But I do have a few cronies who would like to fool with it, and I might be able to trade them for some hog heads or something similarly interesting.
  Without driving an hour or so, we don't see tobacco patches, so I'm only thinking of the novelty.

[keith44]

the two types of tobacco grown locally are "Dark" and "Burley" one is more desireable for smoking, the other for chewing.  Both of these are barn cured, but both can also be smoke cured.  The "Dark" is best smoke cured and stored in "twists" for chewing.
 
   just don't try it green, fresh off the stalk. 
 

[Cornbelt]

 Yeah, heh heh. That's what them kids found out!   

[SHOOTALL]

I don't think I would put seed in the firg. My uncles and grandfarher kept seed each year. They would let severl plants seed out . Let it dry on the stalk then cut it and hang until the pods opened. Then they put seed in a paper bag and stored in a dry place. In a frig. the seed may get fooled thinking it went thru. winter or get dried out to much. 
Most seed will last for a while. The first year you may get 95 % germ. and each year after a little less.

[reliquary]

The "long-term storage" gurus say that keeping it at 50 degrees in an airtight container will make it last for several years.  I'm not planning on using mine unless TSHTF.
 
I can remember folks growing it and my dad making chewing tobacco out of some of it & coarse-chopping some for pipe tobacco.  Both were pretty rank, especially to someone of my tender years.  But I figure it would be good barter stuff.
 
I watched how it was grown & cured when we were stationed in Va & NC.  There are some tricks to it.

[keith44]

several tricks is right  reliquary.  Many are long forgotten, it's been 20 years since we grew tobacco
 

[SHOOTALL]

The "long-term storage" gurus say that keeping it at 50 degrees in an airtight container will make it last for several years.  I'm not planning on using mine unless TSHTF.
 
I can remember folks growing it and my dad making chewing tobacco out of some of it & coarse-chopping some for pipe tobacco.  Both were pretty rank, especially to someone of my tender years.  But I figure it would be good barter stuff.
 
I watched how it was grown & cured when we were stationed in Va & NC.  There are some tricks to it.

Might be hard to keep it cool in a SHTF time. When I was younger we raised air cured . The better leaves were for wrappers. Grandma would make twist and hang on the porch for those wanting a chew. Most would take a slice of winesap apple and put in with the chew. YUM ! If you plant any you need to start in a bed you have burned the ground in. We would cover with straw and a few tires and keep it burning for several hours. The cover after planting to protect seeds. Pull the plants when 10-12 inches tall and replant. If you don't burn you run risk of blue mold killing plants. Also use a different bed each year.After cutting and air cure wait until a damp time say 23 days of rain. The tobacco comes into order and feels like leather. At this time you can work with it to make twist etc. If you try when hot and dry it crumbles. Most tobacco you chew or smoke has been treated with any number of chemicals to make it taste better .

[reliquary]

Shootall:
 
Sounds about like what is stored in my memory banks.  The tobacco sheds I saw in NC & Va were built to accomodate air flow from bottom thru vents on top, to help with the cooling/curing.  a few old-timers used the heat-cured leaves, but what I have stored are air-cured seeds.
 
We would pile brush and debris from clearing & cleaning on the sites that were to be used to grow the plants, and he would burn them in the spring just before planting time.  That killed the mold spores plus provided some of the fertilize. The seeds were started in pots and transferred.
 
He had wooden boxes about 18" square, sealed on the bottom.  Oak, maybe?  After curing, he'd trim the leaves, taking out the central veins, alternating layers of leaves/sprinkling with honey or syrup, then put boards on top of the leaves with weights on top of the boards to compress the mix.  Later that would be cut into small chunks for chewing.  I don't remember how he chopped up the smoking stuff.
 
I might just barter the leaves, don't plan to use the stuff myself (quit almost 30 years ago).  But, if the SHTF, and life expectancy becomes more uncertain, why not....?

[SHOOTALL]

That sounds like flue cured . I think the seed is the same in many cases. Now the tobacco is taken from house to bulk barns and stored for years waiting for prices to rise. To keep it "fresh " they spray it with ammonia. With the air cured the barn had no vents other than what could pass between the weather boards.