Kanchan
A long-standing FCV variety of the Andhra Pradesh Northern Light and Black Soils, dependable and widely known to the auction trade.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Tobacco
- Type
- FCV tobacco variety
- Season
- Rabi
- Maturity period
- About 110–120 days after transplanting
- Seed rate
- About 2.5–3 g of seed per m² of nursery bed; roughly 100 m² of nursery raises seedlings for one hectare
- Expected yield
- Cured leaf around 1,800–2,400 kg/ha under good management
- Suitable soil
- Light sandy loams and light black soils of the AP northern belt
- Release
- An FCV variety for the Andhra Pradesh Northern Light and Black Soils; released and popularised through CTRI and the Tobacco Board
About this variety
Kanchan is a flue-cured Virginia (FCV) tobacco variety long grown in the Northern Light Soils and Northern Black Soils of Andhra Pradesh. It is valued for a dependable cured-leaf yield, an acceptable bright-leaf grade-out when cured well, and wide familiarity among growers and the Tobacco Board auction trade. It carries no special disease resistance and must be grown on a proper rotation away from tobacco and other solanaceous crops to keep black shank in check.
Key characteristics
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing timeNursery July–August; transplant hardened 6–7 week seedlings from September to early November, timed so ripening falls in dry weather
- Seed rateAbout 2.5–3 g of seed per m² of nursery bed; roughly 100 m² of nursery raises seedlings for one hectare
- Spacing100 × 55 cm on ridges (about 18,000 plants/ha)
- Sowing methodNursery-raise, harden, and transplant one seedling per hill onto ridges in the evening; never sow direct
- IrrigationLight frequent irrigations to topping on light soils; a black-soil crop is largely rainfed on stored moisture; then a controlled dry-down for ripening
- FertilizerA light-soil FCV dose of roughly 60:60:90 kg N:P2O5:K2O/ha with sulphate of potash (chloride-free); all the nitrogen within about 30 days of transplanting
- HarvestingPrime 2–3 ripe leaves per plant from the bottom up in 5–7 rounds as each set yellows, and flue-cure each batch in a barn over about a week
Soil & climate
Soil
- Suitable soil
- Light sandy loams and light black soils; not for heavy, rich or poorly drained land
- pH
- 5.0–6.5 for FCV
Climate
- Climate
- A rabi crop of the AP northern belt; leaf quality depends on a dry, bright, warm-day / cool-night spell during ripening, so the transplanting date is set to land ripening in dry weather
Yield & maturity
Maturity period
About 110–120 days after transplanting
Expected yield
Cured leaf around 1,800–2,400 kg/ha under good management
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
Pest & disease considerations
Major diseases
Management notes
- Grow on a 2–3 year rotation with a non-host cereal or sorghum; never after chilli, tomato or brinjal
- Top to the recommended leaf number at flower-button stage and desucker every 7–10 days
- Keep all nitrogen early and chloride-free; scout for the tobacco caterpillar from the nursery stage
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Dependable cured-leaf yield on the AP northern light and black soils
- Well known to growers and the auction trade in the northern region
- Suits both the light-soil irrigated and the black-soil rainfed regimes of the belt
Things to consider
- No black-shank or virus resistance — unsuitable for a field with a black-shank history without a long rotation
- An FCV variety for the AP northern belt; not a bidi, chewing or hookah type and not bred for Karnataka
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Andhra Pradesh
- Telangana
Frequently asked questions
Is Kanchan an FCV or a bidi tobacco variety?
Kanchan is a flue-cured Virginia (FCV) variety — the bright, barn-cured, auction-sold type — grown mainly on the Northern Light and Black Soils of Andhra Pradesh. It is not a bidi, chewing or hookah tobacco.
How long does Kanchan take from transplanting to the first priming?
The bottom leaves usually reach priming ripeness about 70–80 days after transplanting, and picking then continues upward over 5–7 rounds through roughly 110–120 days.
Can I grow Kanchan on heavy black soil?
Kanchan is grown on the light black soils of the AP northern belt, where the black-soil crop is largely rainfed on stored moisture. It is not suited to a very heavy, rich or poorly drained black soil, which gives a coarse, dark, low-grade leaf and raises the black-shank risk.
Sourced from: ICAR-Central Tobacco Research Institute (CTRI), Rajahmundry, Tobacco Board, India. editorial policy.