TX Cotton Field Day Focuses on Weeds, Growth Management, Varieties
June 26, 2025 
Photo: Bayer
With cotton off to a good start in the Upper Gulf Coast region, discussions at a June Bayer Showcase Field Day in Needville, TX, revolved around controlling weeds and managing plant growth.
Timely rainfall so far this season in the Upper Gulf Coast has created near-ideal growing conditions for cotton and weeds. The loss of dicamba in 2025 took away an effective weed management tool for cotton growers, but weeds are still being managed, says Luke Etheredge, Bayer Customer Business Advisor.
“The best approach has been to start clean and stay clean using residual herbicides preplant, at planting, and after emergence,” he says. “Rotating herbicide modes of action is key to managing weeds in cotton this season. After cotton has emerged, it remains important to continue to rotate chemistries for an effective weed management strategy. “
XtendFlex Technology for cotton is built around a proactive system of overlapping modes of actions from burndown to layby, notes Etheredge.
Residual herbicides such as Warrant applied at planting or early post-emergence provide solid options for management of small-seeded broadleaves, like pigweed, and some grasses. Depending on rainfall activation, it can provide up to 30 days of control. Residuals should be used in conjunction with glyphosate products, such as Roundup PowerMAX, for post-emergent grass control. Tank-mix partners with both products are encouraged, based on the weed spectrum and situation in the field.
“We’ve had some good weather with timely rainfall to get a good cotton crop going here, but we’ve also had some windows for spraying where the wind would lay down and we could get in and make timely herbicide applications,” says Etheredge. “Growers, by and large, have done a good job of managing weeds this season.”
Managing Plant Growth
With continued good growing conditions, growers should now focus on timely applications of plant growth regulators to keep it in check, said Scott Stanislav, Deltapine Technical Agronomist.
“PGR management is important right now, and we want to keep an eye on that,” he says. “We’re getting the heat units and timely rainfall, and the crop is holding on to a good fruit set. If we continue to get rainfall, our windows to spray could be fewer, so we must stay on top of growth management to maintain the yield potential showing in many fields.”
Two primary considerations in PGR management are timing and rate. Stance Plant Growth Regulator was recommended at the field day as a product that can help growers control plant height and put the crop into the reproductive stage sooner, setting the stage for an early finish.
Cotton Varieties
Deltapine brand cotton varieties showing solid performance potential in the region were also highlighted at the event. Stanislav said DP 2012 B3TXF and DP 2020 B3TXF continue to perform well for growers, and there is excitement about Class of ’25 cotton varieties.
“Both DP 2522NR B3TXF and DP 2541 B3XF are growing and fruiting up well, and we look forward to seeing how they finish out,” he reports. “Plus, we have three candidates for the Class of ’26 varieties being evaluated in the NPE Program this season that appear to hold a lot of promise.”
DP 2522NR B3TXF is an early-to-mid-maturity variety that offers resistance to both reniform nematodes and bacterial blight. DP 2541 B3XF is a mid-to-full maturity variety that is resistant to bacterial blight and moderately tolerant to Verticillium wilt.
Information from Bayer Crop Science
GET THE NEWSLETTER TODAY!
