Cotton: General Crop Update

The fourth of July is typically associated with cotton blooms in Mississippi.  While some fields are blooming or will do so in the next few days; a number of fields are still one to two weeks away from blooms appearing.  In general, this crop has started to turn the corner and take on a much better appearance over the past week to 10 days.  Given the extremely challenging start to this yea, robust cotton rows are a welcome sign.

A couple of notes regarding this crop given the challenging start to the season.  If you have not made your sidedress nitrogen application, consider your application rate carefully.  Given the inherent lateness of the crop, further delayed maturity due to excess nitrogen is not desirable.  On light to medium textured soils, nitrogen applied in excess of 120 lbs/A is not recommended.  If your crop is following peanuts or soybean, I would consider reducing this rate to 100 lbs/A total for the season.  On your lightest textured soils, 80-90 lbs/A should be considered.  It is not uncommon to hear of very high application rates of plant growth regulators.  When I hear of very high PGR rates being needed to control vegetative growth, I instantly start considering why these rates are needed.  In some cases, a given variety has inherent robust vegetative growth particularly when grown on very fertile soils with adequate water.  However, given research conducted at MSU over the past several years, I would think about reducing nitrogen rates on fields with a history of rank growth and/or where soybean or peanuts were grown last year.  A reduction in nitrogen will likely lead to a reduction in PGR needs.  In addition, defoliation should be easier to achieve.

No one knows what the fall will bring and as such, it is never to early to consider earliness and what you can do to promote this.