Like all of our dry land crops cotton suffered this summer.  Because of this there are more than a few fields without much to harvest.  Boll openers, defoliants and regrowth control chemicals are not that expensive but if you apply them improperly it can be costly.

The biggest consideration for this time of year is really not what products to use, but how to get the most out of them.  I know that when I say it I will get a bunch of boos from the crowd, but we really need to look at the amount of water we put out to improve coverage.  Jared Whitaker, UGA Cotton Agronomists, says that water volume plays as big a role as products and rates.  I would suggest bumping water volume up close to 20 gallons per acre.

Recent rains are not going to help us out either.  Fields that once were cutting out have begun to regrow now that we have a little soil moisture.  Obviously we can’t count on any of this growth helping us at all.  All it has done is give us more to cover and try to control.

So spend a little more time refilling the sprayer and do a better job with cotton defoliation the first time through the field.  Be timely with the pickers and avoid having to ask yourself is it worth spraying again to pick a clean crop.

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