Research Update: Advanced Cotton Irrigation Scheduling
At a Glance
ETDS Progress
Research Topic: Advanced Cotton Irrigation Scheduling
PI: Wesley Porter
Team: Miller Hayes (MS student)
Main Objective: Determine differences in cotton irrigation needs across various population densities.
Motivation
Seed cost are increasing annually causing a shift to lower final stands.
Irrigation cost between $7-$16 per acre inch of water incurring significant cost to growers.
Variable rate planting has become more common across the cotton belt, potentially increasing the spatial variability of crop water demands in a field
Proposed Solution
Maintain or increase profitability by reducing irrigation and seed inputs.
Use modern cotton variety’s high growth vigor and ability to compensate to maintain yields at lower densities.
Results to Date
In 2023 no significant differences in yield was seen between populations.
The lower density stands tend to require less frequent irrigation events throughout the growing season.
Profitability between all tested populations appears to be comparable based on initial analysis
Cotton research trial field
Next Steps
Analyse the second year of data and report findings
Explore other drivers and explanatory variables between treatments
Citation
Hayes, M., Porter, W., Furher, L., Perry, C., Hand, L., Snider, J., & Vellidis, G. (2024, January 3). Assessing Water Use Differences in Cotton Crop Densities. Proc. Beltwide Cotton Conferences. Beltwide Cotton Conference, Fort Worth TX.
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