# Crop Progress: Big Jump in Open Bolls

Author: Jim Steadman
Published: 2021-09-20
Canonical URL: https://www.cottongrower.com/cotton-production/crop-progress-big-jump-in-open-bolls/

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Reports of open bolls jumped 12 percentage points in the past week as the U.S. cotton crop continues to mature.

According to [USDA’s Sept. 19 Crop Progress report](https://downloads.usda.library.cornell.edu/usda-esmis/files/8336h188j/vx022d38r/p5548r56w/prog3921.pdf), open bolls are now reported in 48% of the nation’s cotton fields – just 5 percentage points behind the 5-year average for this week. Biggest weekly gains in the report came from Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Virginia, and California.

Harvest continues to move slowly – not unexpected considering that most of the U.S. crop is still 2-3 weeks behind normal schedule. The report shows that 9% of the U.S. crop has been harvested – up 4 percentage points in the past week. Texas and Arizona continue to lead the way.

Crop condition remains relatively stable, with 64% of the crop rated good/excellent, 28% fair, and 8% poor/very poor.