>Winds and rain from Hurricane Helene crushed this greenhouse in south Georgia. Photo courtesy of J. Michael Moore, Univ.l of Georgia.
GEORGIA-FLORIDA--Growers are still in cleanup mode in Georgia and Florida, says J. Michael Moore, Georgia Extension tobacco specialist. But the damage from Helene was nowhere near what Debby caused. One reason is that harvest was for all practical purposes complete when Helene arrived. Some tobacco was still curing, causing problems where the power went out. "Now, we have almost finished marketing,” says Moore. “I know of several hundred bales that are going to be delivered next Tuesday. After that there will be very little left to sell. We are close to closing the doors on this crop”... There was a good market for pickings this season, Moore says. “A lot of them went for $1 a pound”...Moore estimates that Georgia-Florida growers will market maybe 55 percent of expected production. “So many of our farmers are way short of pounds. They may be short of financing too. But my impression is that local lenders still have faith in tobacco farmers.”
SOUTH CAROLINA--No tobacco remained in the field in South Carolina when Helene struck, says William Hardee, Extension tobacco specialist. “In the Pee Dee, winds got up as high as 40 to 50 miles an hour with three to six inches of rain.” That was very mild compared to upstate S.C. and surrounding states. "We were very fortunate," says Hardee. "2024 was a very challenging season with a lower yield than we hoped for. However, good prices at the marketplace have helped our growers. Most are ready to put this season behind them."
NORTH CAROLINA--In the East, farmers should finish harvest next week. "That would be mid October, which is right on time for some of our larger operations," says Matthew Vann, N.C. Extension tobacco specialist. “We have no frost warning yet, and I don’t think that is going to be a problem. Barring another disaster, we should finish this crop smoothly. In the Old Belt, we probably should have two or three weeks to go, but the recent storms may have caused enough plant stress to not let that happen.” There was definitely more stress from Hurricane Helene in the Piedmont than the Coastal Plain, Vann says…No more than 15% of the flue-cured crop is still in the field now, Vann says, maybe less…An estimated 55% of the N.C. burley crop was still in the field as of September 29, according to USDA-NASS. The extreme rains and winds associated with Helene would have been catastrophic for N.C. burley in the old days but now so little burley is grown there that it is less of a problem...In the Coastal Plain, damage from Helene was extremely minimal. What there was mainly infrastructure damage. There were power outages and some localized flooding. “We fared well in the East.”"
KENTUCKY--Helene wasn’t catastrophic to Kentucky tobacco farmers but it definitely posed some challenges, says Bob Pearce, Kentucky Extension tobacco specialist. There was one compensating benefit: It helped with the humidity. “Our cured leaf quality may have been improved by the moisture left behind by the storm. We were in the midst of a drought prior to the storm. Partially cured tobacco came into high case and stayed that way for serval days leading to a darker color in the cured leaf. There was a lot of rain, in the four to five inch range.” There could have been damage to tobacco in barns. “But our farmers generally got them closed up before the storm arrived,” says Pearce...Kentucky farmers were a little behind on harvesting. “But we were at least 80% harvested, maybe more,” says Pearce. “Now, of what is still in the field, some has been delayed by the rain and wet conditions. But that is a relatively small portion of the crop"... Pearce expects marketing to begin in November.
TENNESSEE--Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina might have been the hardest hit tobacco areas, but these areas produce relatively little tobacco any more so loss will not be high. Helene's damage was also limited by the fact that it struck late in the season: Farmers in the hurricane's direct path had mostly wrapped up harvest when Helene arrived, but there may still be some left in the field, particularly in middle Tennessee, says Mitchell Richmond, Tennessee Extension tobacco specialist. “Normally, we would finish up harvest in the next few days.” (Note: USDA-NASS estimated that 80% of the crop had been cut by September 29.) “Most of our tobacco acreage is concentrated in middle TN, and only a few growers are still producing in East TN.” The storm had one favorable side effect. “The curing season needed more moisture because it was so dry before Helene. If there is any benefit from the storm it is that the moisture it brought will help the cure”…The eastern counties that experienced flooding are still grappling with loss of family and friends, loss of property, power outages and debris cleanup. “There are a lot of people struggling in the aftermath of Helene in east TN and western NC. There is a great deal of damage. Some farms that grow produce lost their entire crop and all the topsoil in their river bottom fields.” Richmond adds, “One of the tobacco fields used for black shank research in Greene County, TN had about 20 feet of water rushing over top." That particular field bordered the enormously overflowed Nolichucky River. "The effect of Helene will be felt for weeks, months, and years to come," he says.
BLACK PATCH—For this area too, the effects of Helene were relatively mild. “We had six inches of rain from last Thursday to Wednesday of this week,” says Andy Bailey, Kentucky-Tennessee Extension dark specialist. “There was no major damage to the crop in the field, and we still have a lot in the field.” It was a late crop already, and then it was delayed further by the weather last week. The rain was actually beneficial, he says. “It had gotten so dry before the storm. A lot of the rainfall soaked in, and afterward we had better soil moisture.” Among the negatives from the storm: A few barns were lost, and diseases were worsened, including a little angular leafspot. But this crop of dark tobacco appears to be of good quality, although the dark air-cured and some of the burley grown in the area are a little high in color, Bailey says.
>Winds and rain from Hurricane Helene crushed this greenhouse in south Georgia. Photo courtesy of J. Michael Moore, Univ.l of Georgia.
GEORGIA-FLORIDA--Growers are still in cleanup mode in Georgia and Florida, says J. Michael Moore, Georgia Extension tobacco specialist. But the damage from Helene was nowhere near what Debby caused. One reason is that harvest was for all practical purposes complete when Helene arrived. Some tobacco was still curing, causing problems where the power went out. "Now, we have almost finished marketing,” says Moore. “I know of several hundred bales that are going to be delivered next Tuesday. After that there will be very little left to sell. We are close to closing the doors on this crop”... There was a good market for pickings this season, Moore says. “A lot of them went for $1 a pound”...Moore estimates that Georgia-Florida growers will market maybe 55 percent of expected production. “So many of our farmers are way short of pounds. They may be short of financing too. But my impression is that local lenders still have faith in tobacco farmers.”
SOUTH CAROLINA--No tobacco remained in the field in South Carolina when Helene struck, says William Hardee, Extension tobacco specialist. “In the Pee Dee, winds got up as high as 40 to 50 miles an hour with three to six inches of rain.” That was very mild compared to upstate S.C. and surrounding states. "We were very fortunate," says Hardee. "2024 was a very challenging season with a lower yield than we hoped for. However, good prices at the marketplace have helped our growers. Most are ready to put this season behind them."
NORTH CAROLINA--In the East, farmers should finish harvest next week. "That would be mid October, which is right on time for some of our larger operations," says Matthew Vann, N.C. Extension tobacco specialist. “We have no frost warning yet, and I don’t think that is going to be a problem. Barring another disaster, we should finish this crop smoothly. In the Old Belt, we probably should have two or three weeks to go, but the recent storms may have caused enough plant stress to not let that happen.” There was definitely more stress from Hurricane Helene in the Piedmont than the Coastal Plain, Vann says…No more than 15% of the flue-cured crop is still in the field now, Vann says, maybe less…An estimated 55% of the N.C. burley crop was still in the field as of September 29, according to USDA-NASS. The extreme rains and winds associated with Helene would have been catastrophic for N.C. burley in the old days but now so little burley is grown there that it is less of a problem...In the Coastal Plain, damage from Helene was extremely minimal. What there was mainly infrastructure damage. There were power outages and some localized flooding. “We fared well in the East.”"
KENTUCKY--Helene wasn’t catastrophic to Kentucky tobacco farmers but it definitely posed some challenges, says Bob Pearce, Kentucky Extension tobacco specialist. There was one compensating benefit: It helped with the humidity. “Our cured leaf quality may have been improved by the moisture left behind by the storm. We were in the midst of a drought prior to the storm. Partially cured tobacco came into high case and stayed that way for serval days leading to a darker color in the cured leaf. There was a lot of rain, in the four to five inch range.” There could have been damage to tobacco in barns. “But our farmers generally got them closed up before the storm arrived,” says Pearce...Kentucky farmers were a little behind on harvesting. “But we were at least 80% harvested, maybe more,” says Pearce. “Now, of what is still in the field, some has been delayed by the rain and wet conditions. But that is a relatively small portion of the crop"... Pearce expects marketing to begin in November.
TENNESSEE--Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina might have been the hardest hit tobacco areas, but these areas produce relatively little tobacco any more so loss will not be high. Helene's damage was also limited by the fact that it struck late in the season: Farmers in the hurricane's direct path had mostly wrapped up harvest when Helene arrived, but there may still be some left in the field, particularly in middle Tennessee, says Mitchell Richmond, Tennessee Extension tobacco specialist. “Normally, we would finish up harvest in the next few days.” (Note: USDA-NASS estimated that 80% of the crop had been cut by September 29.) “Most of our tobacco acreage is concentrated in middle TN, and only a few growers are still producing in East TN.” The storm had one favorable side effect. “The curing season needed more moisture because it was so dry before Helene. If there is any benefit from the storm it is that the moisture it brought will help the cure”…The eastern counties that experienced flooding are still grappling with loss of family and friends, loss of property, power outages and debris cleanup. “There are a lot of people struggling in the aftermath of Helene in east TN and western NC. There is a great deal of damage. Some farms that grow produce lost their entire crop and all the topsoil in their river bottom fields.” Richmond adds, “One of the tobacco fields used for black shank research in Greene County, TN had about 20 feet of water rushing over top." That particular field bordered the enormously overflowed Nolichucky River. "The effect of Helene will be felt for weeks, months, and years to come," he says.
BLACK PATCH—For this area too, the effects of Helene were relatively mild. “We had six inches of rain from last Thursday to Wednesday of this week,” says Andy Bailey, Kentucky-Tennessee Extension dark specialist. “There was no major damage to the crop in the field, and we still have a lot in the field.” It was a late crop already, and then it was delayed further by the weather last week. The rain was actually beneficial, he says. “It had gotten so dry before the storm. A lot of the rainfall soaked in, and afterward we had better soil moisture.” Among the negatives from the storm: A few barns were lost, and diseases were worsened, including a little angular leafspot. But this crop of dark tobacco appears to be of good quality, although the dark air-cured and some of the burley grown in the area are a little high in color, Bailey says.
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