Growing Your Own Tobacco in Canada
Did you know that in Canada it is legal to grow up to 15 kg of tobacco per year for personal use? (See the Excise Act Part 3 "Tobacco - Exception - Manufacturing for personal use" for details.)
Why Grow Your Own Tobacco?
There are two main reasons to consider it:
-
Cost savings – The price of commercial tobacco keeps climbing. Growing your own can significantly reduce expenses.
-
Health concerns – Commercial tobacco is often produced using large amounts of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
-
Tobacco plants grow very large in a single season and quickly deplete soil nutrients, leading commercial growers to rely heavily on fertilizers.
-
The large, juicy leaves also attract pests, requiring repeated pesticide use.
-
As a result, these chemicals accumulate in the leaves and ultimately in the tobacco people consume.
-
By contrast, when grown organically, tobacco can be much cleaner.
How We Grow Tobacco
We grow our tobacco 100% organically:
-
No chemicals, no pesticides.
-
Just natural manure, water, and attentive care.
And so can you! Tobacco is surprisingly easy to grow. For guidance on planting, care, and curing, see our “Growing & Curing Tobacco” guide.
Other Uses of Tobacco Leaves
Beyond smoking, tobacco leaves have been used traditionally in various ways, including medicinal and practical applications. Learn more in our section on Beneficial uses of tobacco leaves.
How Many Plants Do You Need?
Here’s a simple calculation to help you plan:
-
One mature tobacco plant = ~100 g of dried tobacco leaves (about the same as processed tobacco).
-
To estimate your needs:
-
Calculate how much tobacco you buy each month (in grams).
-
Multiply that by 12 (months).
-
Divide by 100 (yield per plant).
-
Example:
-
If you buy a 100 g jar every 2 weeks → that’s 200 g per month.
-
200 g × 12 = 2,400 g (2.4 kg) per year.
-
2,400 ÷ 100 = 24 plants needed.
To reach the legal maximum of 15 kg per year, you would need roughly 150–200 plants.
Why Choose Our Tobacco Seeds
Our seed pack contains over 1,000 tobacco seeds, giving you plenty to work with. Even if growing conditions aren’t perfect, you’ll still have more than enough seeds to successfully grow a healthy crop of tobacco plants.
Please be aware: tobacco smoking is harmful for human health. Read more about heath effects of smoking
