Get to Know Tobacco Plant

Get to Know Tobacco Plant

Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of a plant which is also named after. The tobacco plants are mainly Nicotiana tabacum and Nicotiana rustica, although some other members of Nicotiana are also used to a very limited degree.

Tobacco is seasonal agricultural product that is not a food commodity, but a plantation commodity. This product is consumed not for food but as a pastime or "entertainment", namely as a raw material for cigarettes and cigars. Tobacco can also be chewed. The rich content of secondary metabolites also make them useful as pesticides and medicinal raw materials.

Tobacco has long been used as an entheogen in America. The arrival of Europeans to North America popularized the tobacco trade, especially as a sedative. This popularity led to the economic growth of the southern United States. After the United States Civil War, changes in demand and labor led to the development of the cigarette industry. This new product quickly developed into tobacco companies until scientific controversy broke out in the mid-20th century 

In Indonesian, tobacco is an absorption from a foreign language. The Spanish "tabaco" is considered to be the origin of the word in the Arawakan language, in particular, in the Taino language of the Caribbean, it is said to refer to the scrolls of leaves in this plant (according to Bartolome de Las Casas, 1552) or it could be from the word "tabago", a kind of a y-shaped pipe for inhaling tobacco smoke (according to Oviedo, tobacco leaves are referred to as Cohiba, but Sp. tabaco (also It. tobacco) has been commonly used to define medicinal plants since 1410, which comes from the Arabic "tabbaq", which rumored to have existed since the 9th century, as the name of various types of plants. The word tobacco (in English) may have originated in Europe, and was eventually applied to similar plants originating from America.

Types and areas of tobacco production

Tobacco is a product that is very sensitive to cultivation methods, 

planting locations, season / weather, and processing methods. Therefore, 

a tobacco cultivar will not produce the same quality if it is planted in a 

different agroecosystem. Tobacco products are very specific to a certain 

area and to a certain cultivar. As a result, various tobacco products are 

usually named according to the location where they were planted.

  
Indonesia
In Indonesia, good varieties of commercial tobacco are only produced in 
certain areas. The quality of tobacco is largely determined by cultivar, 
location of planting, planting time, and post-harvest processing. As a result, 
only a few sites match the best quality of tobacco, depending on the target 
product.
Based on the post-harvest processing method, it is known 
as air-cured, fire-cured, flue-cured, and sun-cured tobacco.
 
Kinds of Tobacco High Quality in Indonesia
    
   
    
Type
    
Area
    
Uses
   
   
    
Deli
    
Deli
    
Cigar wrapper
   
   
    
Srintil Temanggung
    
Temanggung, Parakan, Ngadirejo
    
Cigarette (chopped), chew
   
   
    
Virginia-Vorstenlanden
    
Klaten, Sleman, Boyolali,
Sukoharjo
    
Cigarette
   
   
    
Vorstenlanden
    
Klaten, Sleman
    
Filler, Binder, and Cigar wrapper
   
   
    
Madura
    
Madura
    
Chooped cigarette
   
   
    
Besuki Voor-Oogst
    
Jember
    
Chopped cigarette
   
   
    
Besuki Na-Oogst
    
Jember
    
Filler, Binder, and Cigar wrapper
   
   
    
Virgina-East of Lombok
    
East of Lombok
    
Chopped Cigarette
   
  
      
Biology
There are several species in the genus Nicotiana which can be called tobacco. This genus is part 
of the Solanaceae family. Various plants contain nicotine, a neurotoxin that can kill insects. 
Tobacco is a plant that contains the highest amount of nicotine 
compared to other plants. However, unlike other plants from the Solanaceae 
family, tobacco does not contain tropan alkaloid compounds that are toxic to humans.
Although they contain enough nicotine and other psychoactive compounds (germakren, 
anabacin, and other piperidine alkaloids) to repel herbivores, a number of animals 
have evolved and are able to eat species of the genus Nicotiana without being disturbed. 
Tobacco still cannot be eaten by many species. Due to the lack of predators, wild tobacco 
such as Nicotiana glauca has become an invasive species.


                                    
The Impact of Tobacco Products
 
Social
               Smoking in public places has long been practiced only by men. A woman who smokes is considered to 
have corrupted her chastity. In Edo period Japan, prostitutes and their clients approached each other pretending 
to offer cigarettes. The same was done in Europe in the 19th century. Since the American Civil War, tobacco use 
has been associated with masculinity and power, and has become an icon in the image of capitalist rulers. 
Currently tobacco is widely opposed because it causes many health problems resulting in anti-smoking campaigns 
in various places around the world. Bhutan is the only country that prohibits the sale of tobacco.
 
Demographics
               Tobacco is almost entirely turned into cigarettes, and nearly one hundred percent of tobacco use is in the 
form of cigarettes. In 2000, smoking was practiced by at least 1.22 billion people and most of them were men. 
However, the gender gap decreases with increasing age. Poor people have a greater tendency to smoke, so do people 
in poor and developing countries when compared to people in developed countries. Until 2004, WHO reported a 
death toll of 5.4 million people due to smoking.
 
Health
               According to WHO, tobacco is the leading cause of preventable disease death. The dangers of tobacco use 
include diseases related to the heart and lungs such as heart attack, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 
emphysema, and cancer (especially lung cancer, laryngeal cancer and pancreatic cancer).
 
WHO estimates that tobacco caused 5.4 million deaths in 2004. 100 million tobacco-related deaths have occurred 
due to tobacco throughout the 20th century. Tobacco is also the leading cause of infant and fetal death worldwide 
due to smoking parents.
 
Secondhand smoke, even if they don't smoke, can develop lung cancer. In the United States 3,000 adults die from 
exposure to secondhand smoke as a result of secondhand smoke exposure. At least 46,000 passive perkok people 
developed heart disease and died.
 
The number of smokers generally decreases with the increase in a country's welfare and Human Development Index 
(HDI). In other words, the number of smokers decreases as a country moves into a developed country. In the United 
States, the number of smokers has halved as a percentage since 1965, from 42% to 20.8%. Meanwhile, in poor and 
developing countries, the number of smokers has increased in percentage per year. The World Health Organization 
(WHO) predicts that the number of smokers in Indonesia alone will increase by 24 million people from 2015-2025. 
India and China, with their very abundant population and low HDI, make them both markets for cigarettes from around 
the world. China itself has become the largest cigarette producer in the world, producing 2.4 trillion cigarettes per year, 
equivalent to 40% of the world's total production.
 
In recent years, experts have begun researching Alternative Nicotine Delivery Systems (ANDS) or alternative nicotine 
delivery products in tobacco control efforts. Products containing nicotine, such as nicotine patches, e-cigarettes, and 
non-combusted heated tobacco products that do not involve a combustion process, are 95% less of a health risk than 
conventional cigarettes that burn tobacco to deliver nicotine into the user's system.
 
In Indonesia, in 2005 an Ulama figure emerged who produced health cigarettes. The difference is that the sauce that 
is part of the tobacco and clove concoctions is a sauce made from ingredients / elements of traditional ingredients 
originating from within the country (Indonesia) and from several Spice Producing Countries.
 
 
Growing Terms
               There are several criteria for growing tobacco plants, namely temperature, rainfall, and soil conditions. A good 
temperature for growing tobacco is in the 200C to 300 C range from transplanting to harvesting. However, the ideal 
conditions for the production of good quality tobacco leaves are usually at a temperature of 260 C with a humidity of 
70-80%. In addition, tobacco requires an annual rainfall distribution of between 500 and 1,250 mm. However, excess 
water can cause plants to become thin and scaly. For soil conditions, tobacco can generally grow on various types of soil. 
However, good soil for growing tobacco is deep, well-drained clay with little or no risk of flooding. Although tobacco is 
drought tolerant, it grows optimally in soils with temperatures of 20 to 30 degrees with a high water supply capacity.

    
The Process of Cultivating Tobacco Plants
        The process of planting or cultivating tobacco starts from the land cultivation process. The condition of the land 
is very important because the growth and development of tobacco plants is greatly influenced by active roots. Root growth 
is influenced by good soil aeration and sufficient moisture. To maximize the growth of tobacco, it requires good soil aeration, 
adequate water and plant nutrients. 
Determination of the planting month is adjusted to the time of harvest. Tobacco is generally planted
at the end of the rainy season when it generally rains rarely, and is harvested during the dry season.
The accuracy of determining the planting time affects the time of harvest and processing. The wrong
harvest time can affect the quality of the tobacco produced. Tobacco planting is carried out when the
seedlings are 40–45 days old and planting is carried out in the afternoon, because the afternoon light
intensity has decreased so that evaporation is lower. After the tobacco seeds are planted, fertilization
is carried out. In tobacco fertilization, there are several things that must be considered, namely the
fertilizer must be in accordance with the needs of the plant and do not contain large amounts of chlorine
(Cl) because chlorine in leaves of more than 1% can reduce combustion power. The time of applying fertilizer
is adjusted to the needs of the plant. Tobacco plants grow very rapidly at the age of 3 - 7 weeks, marked by
an increase in plant dry matter (McCants and Woltz 1967). The intensity of watering is influenced by the
presence / absence of rain. The water requirement for rice field tobacco is different from tegal tobacco,
in conditions without rain each requires 0.5 liters and 2 liters in one watering. Watering was carried
out up to 39 times. The quality of water used for watering tobacco plants must also be considered,
especially the chlorine content in it, which is not more than 20 mg / liter. Tobacco plants generally flower
at the age of 60-70 days after planting. In this phase, it is necessary to do flower trimming (topping).
Pruning is the activity of cutting flower stalks and shoots with the aim of stimulating / spurring the
growth and development of leaves, especially upper leaves, and obtaining quality according to market demand.
Since there is no seed formation, the energy / photosynthate produced by plants is used to increase leaf
area, weight, body, and nicotine levels. Tobacco harvesting is done at the right time for physiological
cooking, with the characteristic color of turning green to yellow and the handle is easy to break when
picked. The best time to harvest is in the morning after the dew has evaporated around 8 am. In curing it
requires a sufficient moisture content for chemical processes to take place, but excess water can also cause
rotten plants when ripening. Do not harvest young leaves as the chlorophyll is still stable, resulting in a
dead green color. In cigarette smoke, chlorophyll causes a pleasant / bitter odor. After harvesting, the
leaves are sorted according to the size and maturity level of the leaves and followed by ripening. Curing
usually lasts 2–3 days. If the color of the leaves has turned flat yellow, proceed with chopping and drying.


(Muhamad Syafii X BDP 1)