How to provide the tobacco plant with required nutrients

Check out our tobacco fertilizer recommendations, using Haifa's fertilizers

Fertilization of flue cured - Virginia

Requirements

N	P2O5	K2O
-----------kg / Ha-----------
90	75	220

A - Pre-plant soil application

Nutrient	N	P2O5	K2O
% of total requirement applied at this stage	10%	100%
Practical application rate (kg/ha)	9	75	66

Common practice in Zimbabwe*

Fertilizer	Rate (kg/ha)	Total plant nutrients (kg/ha)
		N	P2O5	K2O
2-17-15 *	450	9	75	66

* this N-P-K formula can be replaced by other locally common N-P-K formula or by straight fertilizers (ammonium nitrate, SSP, SOP etc.).

B - Fertigation

Nutrient	N	P2O5	K2O
% of total requirement applied at this stage	90%	0%	70%
Practical application rate (kg/ha)	80	0	153

Growth stage (Weeks after planting)	% N required by stage	Optimal ratio N:P2O5:K2O	kg. /Ha. / Week
			N	P2O5	K2O
2	2	1 : 0 : 0	1.6	0	0
3	3	1 : 0 : 0	2.5	0	0
4	10	1 : 0 : 1	8.1	0	8.1
5	25	1 : 0 : 1	20	0	20
6	25	1 : 0 : 2	20	0	40
7	20	1 : 0 : 3	16	0	48
8	10	1 : 0 : 3	8.1	0	24
9	5	1 : 0 : 3	4.0	0	12
Total			80	0	152

Growth stage (Weeks after planting)	Fertilizers	Ratio	kg./ ha./Week	kg./ha./Week
		N: P2O5 : K2O		N: P2O5 : K2O
2	A.N.	(34- 0- 0)	4.7	1.6
	Total	1 : 0 : 0		1.6	0	0
3	A.N.	(34- 0- 0)	7.6	2.5
	Total	1 : 0 : 0		2.5	0	0
4	Multi-K	(13-0-46)	17.6	2.2		8.1
	A.N.	(34- 0- 0)	20.0	5.9
	Total	1 : 0 : 1		8.1	0	8.1
5	Multi-K	(13-0-46)	43.5	5.6	0	20.0
	A.N.	(34- 0- 0)	42.4	14.4
	Total	1 : 0 : 1		20	0	20
6	Multi-K	(13-0-46)	40.3	5.2	0	8.5
	A.N.	(34- 0- 0)	39.2	13.3
	Total	1 : 0 : 1		18.5	0	18.5
7	Multi-K	(13-0-46)	32.7	4.2		15
	A.N.	(34- 0- 0)	31.8	10.8
	Total	1 : 0 : 1		15.0	0	5.0
8	A.N.	(34- 0- 0)	22.1	7.5
	Total	1 : 0 : 0		7.5	0	0
9	A.N.	(34- 0- 0)	10.3	3.5
	Total	1 : 1 : 1		3.5	0	0

Oriental tobacco

source: Dimitris Stamboulidis (Moscholois Chemicals S.A)

 

 

The practice in Katerini:

     

A few days after transplanting:      
40 kg/str (=400 kg/ha) of 4-14-30   
25 kg/str (=250 kg/ha) of 0-20-0   
35 kg/str (=35 kg/ha) of 0-0-50   

 

20 days after transplanting: 10 kg/str (=100 kg/ha) of Multi-K as side dressing

 

Side dressing:
     
1) Oriental Tobacco:      

N - 2-4 Kg/str   
P₂O₅ - 6-8 Kg/str   
K₂O - 8-12 Kg/str   

 

2) Flue-cured (Virginia):      
N - 5-10 Kg/str   
P₂O₅ - 8-14 Kg/str   
K₂O - 15-22 Kg/str   

 

3) Burley:      
N - 14-20 Kg/str   
P₂O₅ - 20-35 Kg/str   
K₂O - 20-25 Kg/str

Macro-nutrients removed by 1 ton marketable product

N	P	K	Ca	Mg	S
-------------------------------------- Kg/ton ------------------------------------------
50-70	6.0	55-70	30-60	8-20	6-12

Light (air cured) tobacco

N	P	K	Ca	Mg	S
-------------------------------------- Kg/ton ------------------------------------------
30-70	6.0	55-70	30-60	8-20	6-12

Oven cured tobacco

N	P	K	Ca	Mg	S
-------------------------------------- Kg/ton ------------------------------------------
30-35	6.0	55-70	30-60	8-20	6-12

Source: Kinoch: VOLHOUBARE LANDBOU, RSA. Processed by Frans Lourens, Haifa, RSA May, 1999.

Nutrient sufficiency ranges

(source: A & L, Agronomy Handbook, Ankerman & Large, Eds., 1991)

Tobacco	N	S	P	K	Mg	Ca	Na	B	Zn	Mn	Fe	Cu	Al
	------------------------ % -------------------------							--------------- p.p.m ---------------
From	3.00	0.25	0.25	2.50	0.40	2.20	0.01	20	30	50	100	9	20
To	5.00	0.80	0.60	5.00	0.80	4.00	0.10	40	50	200	250	30	200

Tobacco – Mineral analysis values

	Leaves
Nutrient	Average value	Critical level
	(%)
N	3.90	2.00
S	0.70	0.32
P	0.55	0.24
K	3.80	2.10
Mg	0.85	0.37
Ca	3.20	1.70
Na	0.10
	(ppm)
Fe	200
Al	125
Mn	190	35
B	31	16
Cu	15	5
Zn	36	18
Mo	1.1

Need more information about growing tobacco? You can always return to the tobacco fertilizer .