Weekly in-season Updates
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INFORMATION |
June 13, 2005 Talkin’ Cotton
This week has been spent evaluating storm damage to the young cotton. I continue to be amazed at the value of residue from a cover crop to the overall health of the cotton. I have stated in many meetings that cotton is a natural for no-till production programs. Cotton is extremely sensitive to weather damage from the time it emerges until it starts fruiting. Wind, either alone or accompanied by blowing sand will weaken the plant, making it much more susceptible to seedling disease damage. The seedling disease organisms are always in the soil, but a healthy plant will not allow the disease to become established. When the plant is weak or stressed, seedling disease will invade it and further weaken the plant. Our objective is to reduce stress enough on the plant to help it fight disease pressure. No-till or strip tillage is the best technique to reduce early season wind and rain damage to the plant. This week I have seen plants with cotyledon leaves up to four inches above the soil, the leaves were complete without ragged edges and the plant was growing vigorously. In clean till fields nearby, cotyledon leaves were nearly on the soil and were cut up with ragged edges. New true leaves were damaged and the plant was struggling to survive. Cotton’s potential yield is set up during the first forty days or until early into squaring. Moisture during boll filling will determine final yield, but a good early season will provide early fruit set which will allow the crop to produce to its potential. Dryland producers on clean till systems can convert to residue tillage with very few modifications to their planter. With these modifications, I have never seen residue too thick that it couldn’t be planted to cotton. Somehow these planters find the soil level through all the residue, and place the seed properly.
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