Growers Should Compare
Several Factors When Selecting Cotton Varieties

Writer: Tim W. McAlavy, (806) 746-6101, email: t-mcalavy@tamu.edu
Contact: Randy Boman, (806) 746-6101, email: r-boman@tamu.edu

LUBBOCK – Picking cotton varieties for a given growing season is not an easy task. Comparing several qualities among many different varieties, and then keying these qualities to typical growing conditions is a good place to start, said a Texas A&M University agronomist.

“We can’t control our growing environment from year to year, but we can pick the varieties we plant based on positive traits,” said Randy Boman, Texas Cooperative Extension cotton agronomist. “Selecting and planting varieties that fit our farms, with the genetic potential to achieve good lint quality and total yield, is important.”

In 2001, growers faced a season with above normal accumulation of heat units and dry conditions well into harvest.
The result was a mixed bag, in terms of lint quality.

“Our 2001 crop classed at USDA offices in Lubbock and Lamesa had good color and leaf grades, low bark percentage, and improved average staple length compared to the last few years,” Boman said. “At the same time, high micronaire values resulted in discounts for nearly 20 percent of the crop. This was unusual for the High Plains, because we have produced 11 crops that averaged low micronaire since 1969.”

“However, we don’t know what growing conditions await us this year.”

County Extension agents can advise growers on variety performance in local field trials. The Plains Cotton Improvement Program’s (PCIP) 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 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 qualities are closely linked. 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/or 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 nematodes is a desirable trait for most of the High Plains.”

Regardless of how they prioritize agronomic traits/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 2001 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).

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