Narrow row spacing increased yield and decreased nicotine content in sun-cured tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.)

Sun-cured tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) is one of the most important industrial crops for Greece and other Mediterranean countries. A field experiment was conducted in 2012 and 2013 under organic conditions in Agricultural University of Athens in order to compare the growth, yield, nicotine and sugar content of three Greek sun-cured tobacco cultivars at two between-row spacings. Three cultivars of the Greek Basmas were sown in a seedbed in a greenhouse and then transplanted in the field at distances 10–and 20–cm between rows. The experimental design was a split-plot in a randomized complete block with three replicates. Tobacco was harvested at 80, 95, 115, and 135 days after transplanting (DAT). Our results showed that wider row spacing resulted in lower yield than closer row spacing for all three cultivars. Cultivars × year interaction was significant for total yield. Tobacco yield ranged from 1315 to 1920 and from 1545 to 2090kgha−1, for the wider and narrower row spacing, respectively. Chemical analysis revealed that nicotine content was also affected by cultivar and row spacing and ranged between 3.40 and 5.19%. Narrow row spacing resulted in reduction of nicotine content, while sugar content was only affected by cultivar. Narrower row spacing could be used in some cases for a higher production of tobacco of lower nicotine content, whenever this is desirable for blending purposes

Greek identity in Australia

The Greek diaspora community is well-established in Australia. While arrivals from Greece began in the nineteenth century and continued through the twentieth, peak migration occurred in the years following World War II and the Greek Civil War. Today people of Greek background are highly integrated into the mainstream of Australian society and culture. Nonetheless, the characteristics that are most closely associated with cultural identity, specifically the Greek language, membership in the Greek Orthodox Church, and a Greek lifestyle, are still prominent among members and tend to be viewed as extremely important, even by younger individuals. Older members of the community experienced considerable racism and exclusion, but this has now faded, and younger people tend to see themselves as possessing a dual identity as Greek and also fully Australian. As the Australian-born generations come to dominate the Greek community, an increasing shift from Greek to English has been observed, with many younger people lacking the fluency their parents (the transitional generation) usually possess. This, along with an attitude of pride and acceptance of their cultural heritage, is helping to create a new Greek identity that derives not just from individuals’ own experiences in Australia but also from travel to Greece and interaction on the Internet with members of other diaspora communities elsewhere in the world as well as with people in Greece. The result is a conceptualization of Greek identity that is both more transnational in nature but also more characteristically Australian, reflecting the established nature of people of Greek background within the English-speaking Australian mainstream