Lubbock, Texas
April 11, 2003
Texas A&M Agriculture News
NOTICE: Brand or company names appearing in this article are
used for identification only. No endorsement is intended, nor is
criticism of similar products or companies not mentioned.
Writer: Tim W. McAlavy, (806) 746-6101,
t-mcalavy@tamu.edu
Picking productive cotton varieties is not an easy task –
especially on the Texas High Plains, an area where weather can
literally "make or break" a crop.
A Texas Cooperative Extension
cotton agronomist advises producers to do their homework by
comparing several characteristics among many different
varieties, and then keying these characteristics to typical
growing conditions.
"We can't control our growing
environment from year to year, but we can select the varieties
we plant based on positive traits," said Randy Boman, Extension
cotton agronomist. "It is very important to select and plant
varieties that fit your farm – varieties with the genetic
potential to achieve good lint quality and total yield."
Last year was another of
above-normal heat unit accumulation and favorable harvest
conditions on the Texas High Plains. This weather favored many
of the longer-season, open-boll type cottons that have gained
popularity in recent years, he said.
"Last year's crop totaled just
over 3.27 million bales, the fourth largest crop we have seen
since 1977. As a whole, that crop had good color and leaf
grades, low bark percentage, and better average staple length
and strength than many recent crops," Boman said.
"At the same time, 2002 was
another high-micronaire year. Our micronaire averaged just over
4.3, the second highest micronaire value on record. Only the
2001 crop had a higher micronaire value -- its average was 4.4."
High micronaire combined with
short staple length can result in substantial discounts in
growers' USDA loan value on some standard stripper-type cotton
varieties. Some longer-season, open-boll picker type cottons did
not have micronaire values or staple length worthy of discounts,
Boman said.
Even so, growers should not plant fence-row to fence-row with
one type of cotton, he added.
County Extension agents can
advise growers on variety performance in local field trials. The
Plains Cotton Improvement Program's replicated large-plot
systems variety trials, sponsored by Plains Cotton Growers and
Cotton Inc., also contain good baseline information, the
agronomist said.
"The variety trials conducted by
John Gannaway, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station cotton
breeder, at Lubbock and many other High Plains sites is another
good source of comparison information," Boman said. "It is best
to consider multi-year and multi-site performance averages, when
they are available. At the same time, there are many new
varieties appearing on the scene that have not undergone
multi-year university testing."
Yield potential is probably the
single most important agronomic trait in producers' minds, but
growers should also give significant consideration to lint
quality.
"We sell pounds of lint, but the
value of each pound is a function of fiber quality, so these two
characteristics are closely linked to profitability. But we also
want to consider adaptability," Boman said. "Many long-season
picker cottons are better adapted to areas with longer growing
seasons, but some of these varieties have produced record yields
and quality on the Plains, due to extremely warm September
weather in recent years.
"Growers who made record yields
with those varieties had above-normal heat accumulation. They
also terminated irrigation and applied harvest aids
(defoliants/dessicants) in a timely fashion, and they got their
crop out of the field early."
Even when growers can catch a
"run of good weather," they should not leave open-boll picker
cottons in the field until a freeze conditions the plants for
harvest. Unacceptable preharvest lint loss is likely to result,
the agronomist said.
"On the other hand, the
storm-proof stripper varieties are more suited to our harvesting
conditions, and they are more likely to survive damaging weather
at harvest without considerable lint loss," Boman said. "Check
the storm-proofness of any variety on your potential planting
list. If you do choose an open-boll picker variety, plan and
budget ahead for a good harvest aid program that will let you
achieve an early harvest. Don't be caught with lots of lint in
the field, but no chance of harvest due to inclement weather."
The value of transgenic varieties
is another consideration. Growers should consider varieties bred
for herbicide tolerance and insect resistance (Roundup Ready,
BXN, Bollgard) only if this technology is a
bargain compared to typical traditional weed or insect control
costs for a specific field, he said.
"The jury is still out on the
value of Bollgard in the High Plains, because our bollworm and
budworm pressure is generally light," Boman said. "The inherent
agronomic performance of some Bollgard+Roundup Ready "stacked
gene" varieties may simply be better than some Roundup Ready
cottons even though both have the same genetic background.
"When we think of disease,
resistance to diseases such as verticillium or fusarium wilt,
bacterial blight and root-knot nematodes is a desirable trait
for most of the High Plains."
Regardless of how they prioritize
agronomic qualities, growers should strive for diversity when
selecting cotton varieties. "Don't plant the entire farm to only
one variety of cotton," Boman concluded. "Matching varieties and
transgenic technologies to specific fields will help you spread
production risk. It is simply good management."
Growers can obtain a copy of
Gannaway's 2002 Cotton Performance Tests in the High Plains and
Trans-Pecos Areas of Texas, or the PCIP's Systems Agronomic and
Economic Evaluation of Transgenic and Conventional Cotton
Varieties in the Texas High Plains, from their county Extension
agent or from Texas A&M's Agricultural Research and Extension
Center at Lubbock (806) 746-6101. This and other crop production
information is also available on the Internet at:
http://lubbock.tamu.edu.
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