Nicotine is synthesized in the roots of tobacco plants and transported to the leaves. The nicotine content of tobacco is impacted by multiple agronomic practices. Plant population, nitrogen fertilization rate, and topping procedure are among the easiest agronomic practices to alter with the intent of reducing nicotine content in the cured leaf. Field studies were conducted to evaluate these practices with both conventional (K 326) and low nicotine (LA FC53) flue-cued tobacco varieties. Increasing plant population and topping higher (thus increasing leaf number) had minimal impact on nicotine. Delaying topping time later than recommended for conventional tobacco production reduced nicotine levels and not topping the plants had the greatest effect. Reducing nitrogen rate had only marginal impact. None of these changes in agronomic practices (alone or in combination) consistently reduced the nicotine level of LA FC53 below 0.5%. Substantial differences were observed in nicotine levels between years with both the conventional and low nicotine varieties. The alternative agronomic practices evaluated had a negative impact on both the yield of quality of the cured tobacco.

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