In spite of their inferior quality, pale yellow flue-cured tobacco varieties (N. tabacum L.) are being cultivated as pre-crop of rice in paddy field because of its early leaf maturity. Fertile and male sterile Hicks as green variety , three pale yellow varieties and six single cross $F_1$ hybrids between green and pale yellow varieties, were evaluated. Fertile $F_1$ hybrids were similar to pale yellow varieties in early leaf maturity, curing characters and nicotine contents, where-as they were lower in total nitrogen, higher in reducing sugar comparing to those of the pale yellow varieties.