Crop Scan Ag Report: Two Words – Hot and Dry
June 20, 2022 
This year’s cotton crop is in the ground, but two words dominate conditions right now: hot and dry. Early planted cotton is blooming in some areas, and insect pressure is starting to ramp up. Overall, the crop looks favorable. It just needs a drink. Here’s what our consultants reported in mid-June.
Chad Harrell owns and operates Harrell Agronomic Services in Northeastern North Carolina.
Cotton is finally starting to move along in our area.
We are finishing thrips and weed applications on the late replanted cotton this week. Most growers are top dressing the early planted cotton which is now at match-head square. We are starting to see some plant bugs in the early cotton, but only a few fields have reached threshold. We will likely be spraying more lygus and Pix next week.
Most areas are still on the dry side. We did receive some rain from the front this week, but it remains too spotty.
Wes Briggs consults on cotton, corn, peanuts, soybeans, and small grains for growers in Georgia, Alabama, and Florida.
Our cotton is going to be on the late side this year. We finally got all of our cotton planted, and my acres are up to where they normally are. But we lost a whole week of planting because of 7 to 9 inches of rain early, and that really put a damper on us. We lost some cotton, and several growers had to come back and replant. We’re going to need a late frost down in this area.
Right now, our oldest cotton is at first bloom, and our youngest cotton is in the cotyledon stage.
In terms of weed control, we were able to get in the fields to spray, and we’re getting weeds under control. Growers are trying to get across everything, some for the second time. As far as insects, we have pockets of aphids that are moving into cotton, but plant bugs are really sporadic right now. We’re seeing some plant bug movement, but nothing like we saw last year. That was pretty rough.
It’s hot and dry, but cotton overall looks good and has great potential. We just have a long way to go – and need some rain. Our dryland acres are young and past the critical point, but we do need to catch a rain to keep things moving along. A lot of pivots are running. We’re barely able to stay up on pivots in corn. Some of those pivots haven’t been shut off for two weeks. Right now, we’re watering cotton and peanuts as needed.
Tucker Miller is a Mississippi-based independent private consultant for cotton, soybeans, corn, peanuts, rice, and vegetables.
The cotton in our area is looking a lot better. We have battled pigweeds and grass, and it looks like we won the first round.
Photo: Tucker Miller
Our cotton ranges from 12 nodes to eight or nine nodes. We have started our lygus bug applications and applying Pix where needed.
We are applying lay-by and have actually started some water. It has been hot and dry for the last 10 days. I would expect to find a bloom in about a week on our first planted cotton.
Mark Nemec is an independent agricultural consultant for cotton, wheat, grain sorghum and corn in the Blacklands and Brazos River Bottom area of Central Texas.
Well, it looks like someone left the oven door open.
Central Texas is experiencing August weather in June. Our temperature has been at or close to 100 degrees for the last couple of weeks with no relief in sight. Below normal rainfall, high temperatures, and relentless wind have taken a toll on crops around here. Our corn went from promising to disappointing fast. The cotton is hanging on for now. Most fields are at or reaching bloom stage and will need some moisture soon. Irrigation is in full swing in the Brazos River Bottoms.
We had a pretty big run of fleahoppers in the last few weeks but seem to be getting past them now. It’s been too hot and dry for many new weeds to sprout, except for the irrigated fields. PGRs haven’t been needed on the dryland cotton as Mother Nature is taking care of that for us right now.
P.S. – Send us some rain, please.
Kerry Siders is Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Agent-IPM for Hockley, Cochran, and Lamb Counties.
As is always the case, cotton is all the board from dry seed in the ground waiting on that rain, to the small percentage of cotton acres on the other end of the spectrum which are near squaring and making good progress.
However, it is the majority in between which is of most concern. We have many acres of dryland which are up that will run out of moisture soon before the end of June for sure if it does not come a rain. And then both dryland and irrigated acres which have been exposed to all sorts of stresses such as wind, blowing sand, seedling disease, or chilling injury.
My estimates, as of the writing of this article in mid-June, is that we have approximately 60% of our cotton acres that will have a visit from an insurance adjuster. This is based on very poor viable cotton plant stand counts. Tough situation.
Here are my priorities as we go into July:
- Fertility – Where are you at in reaching your realistic yield goal? Be prepared to seize the moment to fertilize.
- Irrigation – Most plants still need to root down. But make sure not to allow undo stress on irrigated cotton plants as they move into squaring – you can induce square shed.
- Weed Control – Hopefully, you have a good at-plant burndown and residual in place. I am seeing quite a bit of pigweed emergence and volunteer milo. This hot weather may not be very conducive for Liberty. Roundup applications are doing a good job of catching most everything besides the pigweed and marestail.
- Plant Map – What is the plant telling you? Will it need a plant growth regulator with good moisture, heat, and fertility?
- Insect Scouting – Never let your guard down. Watch the thrips, wireworms, Lygus, and fleahoppers in cotton.
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