Specialists Speaking

Very little cotton was planted in April this season in Arkansas. Most of our April cotton was planted the last two or three days of the month when planting conditions went from poor to very good. They continued to be very good through May. The first 40 days in the life of a cotton plant sets the foundation for yield ... Read More »

Changing weather patterns have again shaken up the 2018 planting season in the San Joaquin Valley. The good news is we finally got some rain and snowpack in the late winter and very early spring, along with promise of at least a little more irrigation water. The uncertain news includes delays in getting some fields planted due to cool, wet ... Read More »

As we move into spring, there appears to be widespread optimism for cotton in North Carolina. The 2017 season was successful for most growers, and with the new program and higher prices, the outlook for cotton is strong. With that said, we all remember the lessons learned from the challenges of recent years, one of which is how to plant ... Read More »

CALIFORNIA Heading into the 2018 growing season, the biggest “maybe” out there again is irrigation water supplies and lack of rain and snow to date. Water supply issues are not yet a “done deal” for 2018. We are still hoping for some rain and snow and better decisions and release of workable amounts of water for California farmers out of ... Read More »

CALIFORNIA The remaining winter and early spring months may bring some rain or snow, but weather patterns in late 2017 and early 2018 look like a dry prelude to the 2018 planting season. So far this winter, central California has had relatively normal temperatures but extraordinarily dry conditions. Uncertain rainfall and snow forecasts raise concerns about irrigation water supplies, and ... Read More »

CALIFORNIA Heading into winter, the question of uncertain irrigation water supplies in California’s San Joaquin Valley is again creeping into conversations due to the warm, dry fall of 2017. For many SJV growers who during the extended drought invested in improved groundwater wells and increased capacities, this mostly affects the degree to which they may have to rely on groundwater ... Read More »

ARKANSAS The National Agricultural Statistics Service October Crop Production Report estimated Arkansas cotton production at 1 million bales, unchanged from the September forecast but 160,000 bales more than last year. Yield is expected to average 1,096 pounds per harvested acre, unchanged from last month but up 21 pounds from 2016 and slightly less than our five-year average of 1,101 pounds ... Read More »