EVALUATION OF FOLIAR SPRAYS FOR CONTROL OF WEATHER FLECK ON FLUE-CURED TOBACCO

Abstract

Selected materials were sprayed on field-grown plants to control weather fleck. Treated and untreated plants were compared for effectiveness in preventing this physiological disorder and for effects on the leaves. Five of 32 test materials, namely diphenylamine, phenothiazine, 1,4-naphthoquinone, dichlone and N,N′-diphenyl-p-phenylenediamine, were effective in preventing weather fleck. Diphenylamine, phenothiazine, and 1,4-naphthoquinone were particularly effectve. Small amounts of leaf damage occurred on plants sprayed with these three materials, but such damage was insufficient to cause quality depreciation of the cured leaves. No leaf damage occurred on spraying with dichlone and N,N′-diphenyl-p-phenylenediamine, but excessive green fixation, which reduces leaf value, occurred in leaves from dichlone-sprayed plots. Phenothiazine caused some green fixation.