Tobacco is a tropical crop in origin but it is grown in subtropical and temperate regions of the world. It is grown from 60°N latitude in Sweden to 40°S latitude in New Zealand, China, India and U.S.A. The crop needs around 28°C as an optimum temperature for germination but it may germinates at a temperature ranging between 15°C to 35°C.

• The crop cannot withstand frost and starts withering or wilting at a temperature above 35°C.
• Tobacco needs 50-100 cm rainfall which should be well distributed throughout growing period.
• Areas having a rainfall of more than 125 cm are not fit for tobacco production, whereas a rainfall of less than 75 cm results in production of leathery leaves having very high nicotine content in them.
• The leaves remain smaller and possess very poor burning quality.

Following has been an ideal distribution of rainfall for the best yield and quality:

Growth Stage	State of rain fall
Seedling establishment	Cloudy weather with drizzling. (soon after transplanting
Early growth stage	Light rainfall
Grand growth stage	Bright sunshine with occasional moderate rain
Ripening (maturity) of leaves	No rains at all because the rain will wash the gums from the leave's surface resulting in poor curing. Sometimes bigger rain drops split the leaves.

• Waterlogging at any stage of growth is deadly harmful because the plants cannot withstand waterlogging.
• While hailstorm causes a serious injury to the leaves any time during growing period.
• Relative humidity is one of the deciding factors for yield, quality and curing of leaves and it is observed that a relative humidity of 85-90 per cent is an optimum humidity for the crop because at this level of humidity the leaves are easily used and they do not become very brittle.
• Wind storm at any stage of growth after seedling establishment is very harmful because the leaves split and reduce the quality specially when the plants have a large exposed leaf surface.

• The type, grade and quality of tobacco produced are considerably influenced by the soil characteristics, particularly the texture of the surface and sub-soils.
• Light soils tend to produce a large and thin leaf, light in weight and colour, mild in strength and weak in aroma whereas leaf produced on heavy soils is usually thick and heavy, dark-coloured, strong and aromatic.
• However, certain indigenous tobaccos such as bidi-tobacco are an exception to this general rule, and bidi-tobacco which is relatively thick, heavy and strong in aroma is grown most successfully on light alluvial soils of Charotar tract of Gujarat.
• These physical and chemical changes may also be attributed to the varietal characteristic, the climate prevailing during the growing season and the cultural and manurial practices under which the crop is raised.
• As a result of the interaction of the variety with the environmental complex, production of some of the main tobacco types in India has been concentrated in certain zones, e.g., flue-cured tobacco in Andhra Pradesh, bidi-tobacco in Gujarat and cigar tobacco in Tamil Nadu.

• Flue-cured Virginia tobacco is grown on different types of soils ranging from Sands to sandy loams of East Godavari, West Godavari and Khammam districts, the red loams of Prakasam and Nellore districts and heavy black cotton soils of Guntur, Krishna, Prakasam and East Godavari districts.
• The silty loams of River side Lanka lands in Krishna and Godavari districts in Andhra Pradesh Producing a wide spectrum of leaf styles catering to the varying needs of importing countries in the world.
• These soils differ widely in type (texture) and in natural productivity (soil fertility plus management)
• These properties of the soil are the potent factors in determining the type of leaf produced. Further, soils play an outstanding role in deciding the quality and commercial value of tobacco.
• The type, grade and quality of tobacco produced are, to a large extent influenced by the soil characteristics particularly the texture and colour of surface and subsoil.
• In an open, light textured soil, tobacco roots have been found at a depth of 120 cm utilising moisture and plant nutrients from such deep layers of soil.
• Three major soil conditions that contribute to maximum leaf expansion are adequate supply of oxygen, water and plant nutrients

Typical characteristics of soils best suited to the production of high quality flue-cured tobacco are:

• A sandy surface soil upto 15 to 25 cm depth.
• A yellowish or a reddish sandy clay sub-soil extending upto a depth of 150 cm.
• An acidic soil reaction of pH 5.5 to 6.5.
• A low reserve of essential plant nutrients
• A low organic matter content and.
• Very low chloride content (less than 100 ppm).

• Cultivation of tobacco on inundated lands and low lying basins are to be avoided as the leaf produced on these soils has been found to exhibit very poor burning quality, due to absorption of moisture and deteriorates colour during storage.
• Saline soils whose soil chloride content is greater than 100 PPM should be excluded from virginia tobacco cultivation.

Black Soils:

• The black soils (vertisols) of the State under Flue cured tobacco cultivation are characterized by clayey texture (40-60% clay), alkaline soil environment, high fertility and impeded drainage.
• These soils rich in lime and potash. Tobacco is raised as a rainfed rabi crop with the conserved soil moisture of south west monsoon rains.

• The crop in black soils is grown under severe moisture stress and as a result the plant growth and yields are low.
• Light-Soils: These soils are derived from sand stones, sandy to sandy loams in texture, moderately acidic in soil reaction and very poor in fertility and required adequate supplies of fertilizer elements viz., nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium and magnesium for successful production of quality tobacco.
• In Andhra Pradesh these light soils are distributed in East Godavari, West Godavari and Khammam districts popularly called the Northern light soils (NLS).
• The crop in Northern light soil regions raised under assured irrigation source and crop yields are high.
• Another group of medium textured red soils, growing FCV tobacco and popularly called as Southern light soils (SLS) are occurring in Prakasam and Nellore districts.
• These soils contains moderate quantities of clay, neutral to slightly alkaline with limited drainage, low in organic matter, low in P and medium to high in potash.
• For production of first class flue-cured tobacco it is necessary to have a soil which is free-draining and which can be kept well-aerated throughout the growing period.
• The fertility status of the soils should not be high. In fact, nitrogen starvation condition should prevail at the times of maturation of leaf.
• Red soils of Karnataka (Chikkayelchigere and Hunsur), which are used for growing flue-cured tobacco, range from clays to sandy loams.
• However, these soils are characterised by the dominance of illitic clay unlike Andhra Pradesh black soils which are predominantly montmorillonitic.
• Consequently, the swelling and sticky properties when wet and the shrinkage and hard clody nature of the soil when dry like in black soils are not severe in the case of red soils of Karnataka, while such properties pose a great problem in the management of Andhra Pradesh black soils.
• The low inherent fertility and a fairly good water-holding capacity of the Karnataka, red soils without being alkaline are responsible for the use of these soils for successful production of flue-cured tobacco in Karnataka.
• The heavy Chikkayelchigere red soils of Mandya district are less desirable than the lighter Hunsur soils for production of quality tobacco.

FCV in Gujarat

• Grey brown soil at Anand may be taken to represent the properties in general of the goradu soils which are used in Vijapur region of Mehsana district of Gujarat for flue-cured tobacco production.
• This soil is highly sandy consisting of 75 to 80 per cent fine sand. The water-holding capacity is good enough in spite of the highly sandy nature of soil.
• However, the alkalinity of the soil and the high calcium saturation of the exchange complex are the two major factors which are responsible for the high calcium and low potassium content of flue-cured leaf from this region.

• Cultivation of bidi tobacco is confined mainly to two zones, viz. Charotar tract of Gujarat and Nipani area of Karnataka.
• Sangli and Kolhapur districts of Maharashtra also produce bidi tobacco to some extent.
• In Charotar zone which comprises Kaira and Baroda districts, bidi tobacco is grown on sandy to sandy-loam soils called 'goradu' soils.
• In Nipani area of Karnataka (comprising mainly Belgaum district), the soils used for cultivation of bidi tobacco are heavy soils ranging from silt loams to clays.

• Hookah tobacco can be used as a chewing type and vice versa. So the soils growing chewing tobacco in North India are the same as those used for hookah type. Gujarat produces chewing tobacco in alluvial sandy loam.
• In Tamil Nadu, a southern state has, large area under chewing type.
• Soils in Tamil Nadu, which are used for production of chewing tobacco, range from gravelly to sandy loams.
• In the coastal belt of Tanjore district some coastal sands are used for growing chewing tobacco. Some of the cigar and cheroot tobacco varieties grown on red loams of Madurai district are utilised for chewing purposes because of their poor burning quality.
• Thus it may be seen that there are no specific areas in India where chewing tobacco is concentrated as in the case of flue-cured or bidi types.

• This local type of tobacco is grown in Telangana. Natu leaf , which is used for manufacture of cigarettes has to be thin in texture with a pleasing aroma and moderate strength, whereas that used for cheroot, chewing and snuff can be stronger.
• Natu tobacco grown in heavy clayey soils of Guntur district is raised on the conserved moisture, mostly as an unirrigated crop.
• These soils are generally rich in lime. Some pati soils (soils from old village sites which are rich in potash) are also used for growing Natu tobacco.
• Natu tobacco is grown on shallow red loams with gravelly sub-soil.
• Because of the very free draining nature of the soil, the crop is irrigated several times once a week or ten days. Similarly, Natu tobacco is generally grown as an irrigated crop on the red loams.
• The unirrigated crop on heavy clayey soils is given a moderate manuring if necessary, whereas the irrigated crop on light soils receives very heavy manuring by way of sheep penning, farmyard manure, organic cakes, etc.

• Cigar-filler tobacco is a heavy type of tobacco with good taste, aroma and burning quality.
• This tobacco type is produced in the U.S.A., Cuba and Philippines on soils which are more fertile and heavier than the soils used for cigar-wrapper or flue-cured types in those countries.
• Nevertheless, excellent drainage, good aeration and an acidic reaction are important criteria for the suitability of soils.
• In India, cigar-filler and binder tobaccos are grown on sandy to loamy, well-drained, red and brown soils of Coimbatore and Madurai districts of Tamil Nadu with higher CaO content than K2O content.
• Because of the highly sandy nature of the soil (about 65 per cent coarse fractions) and yet a fairly good water-holding capacity, the right air-water permeability characteristics are maintained by the soil.
• In spite of the fact that the crop receives some rainfall during its growth, it is heavily irrigated, about 20 times in all, from well waters without fear of waterlogging.

• Hookah-tobacco is grown mainly in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.
• Some of the chewing types can also be used for hookah purposes or vice versa depending on the method of curing.
• In Uttar Pradesh, hookah tobacco is grown mainly on the alluvial soils of Farukhabad and Etah districts. Some of these soils are saline also.
• Hookah-tobacco crop of Uttar Pradesh receives regular irrigation.
• Muzaffarpur, Dharbhanga and Purnea districts of Bihar produce substantial quantities of hookah tobacco. These soils are moderately alkaline silt loams and highly calcareous in nature.
• Since the water-holding capacity is fairly good, tobacco is transplanted after the receipt of last monsoon showers. Crop growth is satisfactory for several weeks after transplanting. However, depending on the facilities, one or two irrigations are given after about six weeks.
• In West Bengal, hookah tobacco is mainly concentrated in Cooch-Behar and Jalpaiguri districts. The soils are sandy to silt loams. Here also the crop receives only two or three irrigations as in the case of Bihar.

• Lanka tobacco is also a local type confined to Andhra Pradesh.
• It is exclusively grown on the banks and the deltaic islands of Godavari in Andhra Pradesh.
• The soils on which it is grown are derived from the recent alluvium deposited by the Godavari river during annual floods. They range from sandy to loam.
• Some of them which are submerged yearly by the river floods are silty and hence highly fertile requiring no further manuring.
• They also conserve lot of moisture and so tobacco crop is taken year after year on such low-lying lankas without any irrigation.
• On the other hand, high-level lankas require moderate manuring with groundnut-cake or castor-cake and two or three irrigations in order to raise a normal crop of Lanka tobacco.

• The requirements of soil and climate for production of wrapper tobacco of good quality are more exacting than for other types.
• In olden days before Partition of India Rangpur district (now in Bangladesh) was meeting the requirements of cigar-wrapper leaf of India.
• After Partition, as a result of experimental trials it was found that reasonably good quality wrapper leaf can be produced in Dinhata of Cooch-Behar district of West Bengal and to some extent in banana and coffee gardens (at an altitude of about 1500m) of the lower Palani Hills in Madurai district.
• The required qualities, namely thinness, silky texture, elasticity, mild taste and light aroma are the outcome of high humidity and low temperatures prevailing in these areas during the growing season.

• Tobacco is grown in a wide range of soil and climatic conditions.
• Practically every state in India grows one type of tobacco or other.
• However cultivation of this crop is concentrated in certain well-marked zones.
• The concentration of cultivation of different types of tobacco in India is as follows

Flue-cured Virginia tobacco

• Nearly one third of the country's total production comprises of F.C.V. tobacco, which is utilised in the manufacture of Cigarettes.
• It is the principal export-oriented variety and as much as 50% of the total production of this tobacco is exported to foreign countries.
• Among the states growing tobacco A.P.(erstwhile) occupies the first place accounting for more than 95% of production in the country.
• In Andhra Pradesh its cultivation in confined to the districts of Guntur, Prakasam, Nellore, East and West Godavari, Krishna and Khammam.
• In the traditional areas, this tobacco is cultivated in heavy black cotton soils.
• In recent years, the cultivation of this tobacco is being extended to new light soil areas not only in A.P. but also in Karnataka and Gujarat.
• In addition to FCV tobacco, Natu tobacco also is used in the manufacture of cheap cigarettes as well as pipe mixtures.
• White burley tobacco used as blend in the manufacture of cigarettes and lanka tobacco used in the manufacture of country cheroots are also grown in A.P.

Bidi Tobacco

• Bidi-tobacco shares about 30% of the total tobacco hectare and about 40% of tobacco production in the country.
• Among the states growing this tobacco, Gujarat stands first. In Gujarat, the cultivation is concentrated mainly in Kaira and Baroda Districts and to some extent in Mehsona District.
• The other important bidi tobacco growing areas are Nippani covering Balgaaum District of Karnataka and parts of Kolhapur and Sanghi Districts of Maharashtra.
• Kurnool area in A.P. is a new developing bidi tobacco area. To small extent it is grown in Rajasthan and M.P.

Cigar and Chewing tobacco

• The South Tamilnadu area covering Madurai, Tiruchirapalli and Coimbatore Districts grow Cigar filler, binder, Cheroot, Chewing and Snff tobaccos.

Hookah Tobacco

• Desi, Vilayati, Motihari and Sati types of tobacco are cultivated in Muzaffapur, Darbharga, Purnea districts of Bihar and Cooch Bihar and Jalpaigun Districts of West Bengal.
• These types are also used for chewing and in the manufacture of snuff. Farukhabad in U.P. is also an important area in growing tobacco mainly for hookah and chewing purpose.
• Among the different states, A.P. Gujarat, Karnataka, Bihar, Maharashtra, Tamilnadu, U.P. and West Bengal are important for the production of different types grown in the country.
• Because of the shift in the consumer preference for cigarette smoking, the area under F.C.V tobacco has shown considerable increase, where as a declining trend has been seen under the types of tobaccos viz. Chewing, Lanka, Cheroot and Snuff.