Production

In 1984, when I was fresh out of high school, I had the opportunity to work with Dr. Ed Kowalski, who, at the time, was with the University of Missouri. About every 10 days, he came down to one of our local retailers, got a group of us together and taught us how to scout for thrips, plant bugs and worms during the pre-Bt days.

Since 2011, the Chinese government has purchased and stored almost 75 million bales of its production at a price well above world market prices. To meet its textile mills’ demand, about 20 million bales of that cotton have been sold, but as of early 2014, more than 50 million bales still resided in government storage.China’s stocks policy has been a recent boost for U.S. cotton farmers because its textile industry looked increasingly to the world market

For all practical purposes, the 2013 cotton has been harvested. There may be a few isolated fields that haven’t been harvested, but these would be on the heavier, wetter soils that are prone to flooding. More importantly, the modules have been taken to the gins. I haven’t seen a module truck on the road for at least three weeks.

In the past few years, cotton acreage has taken a dip across the Belt as farmers reacted to attractive grain prices, and, in some areas, water issues. Despite this trend, many people in the industry have alluded to 2014...

TRENT LAMASTUS LAMASTUS COTTON CONSULTANTS, INC. CLEVELAND, MISS. I developed a love for agriculture while growing up and working on the family farm. While attending Delta State University, I worked during the summers as a cotton scout. This is when I was...

I am hoping for a lot of things, and I certainly hope that by the time this magazine is published in January that we’ll have a Farm Bill. We need for that to happen, along with a settlement of the WTO/Brazil case. And I am also hoping for some stability in the markets – especially as it pertains to China and India. It distresses me that these two countries’ actions can have such a significant impact on what happens to U.S. cotton in terms of cotton prices.

BY TOMMY HORTON EDITOR How do you convince 150 farmers and their wives to make a quick trip to Charleston, S.C., just a couple of weeks before Christmas? You make sure that the schedule appeals to everybody. And that is precisely what...

After months of anticipation, Monsanto has announced that three new cotton varieties will be launched for the Deltapine Class of 2014, including a variety bred for resistance to root-knot nematodes (RKN). The announcement occurred at the Charleston Place Hotel...

BY TOMMY HORTON EDITOR Can torrential rains keep a cotton crop from surviving and delivering any kind of yield? If you had talked to the Doyle farm family in Emporia, Va., last July, you would have heard that question. As a matter...

BY BRUCE KIRKSEY MEMPHIS, TENN. We are very blessed to be part of American agriculture. Maybe it’s be-cause of the Thanksgiv-ing and Christmas seasons, but I am truly proud to be a part of agriculture. I am very proud of the fact...

Bryan Clenney has plenty of experience with sandy soils and nematodes where he farms in Baker and Miller Counties of southwest Georgia. One field in Baker County is so sandy that he’s nicknamed it the “Mojave Desert.” “When you’re in...

MISSOURI Mike Milam milammr@missouri.edu HARVEST CONTINUES IN BOOTHEEL According to the Missouri Crop Progress and Condition Report for the week ending, Nov. 10, cotton harvested was 64 percent complete, 18 days behind last year and 17 days behind normal. There was a lot...

Cotton seed breeders continually work to bring new varieties to the field in an effort to offer producers more options from which to choose for the upcoming season. 2014 is no different. In addition to companies conducting field trials and...

By Tommy Horton Editor Rackler BrothersTo survive as a cotton farmer in the Hockley County area of West Texas takes stamina, perseverance and a lot of studying. No, this isn't about preparing for a final exam in college. It's about meticulously...

Missouri’s cotton producers are ready to get this crop out of the field. However, they will need to wait longer than usual. According to the Crop Progress and Condition Report for the week ending Sept. 15, cotton opening bolls were 10 percent complete, 33 days behind last year and 24 days behind normal.