The growing season is advanced. I was quite surprised driving up Rt. 32 from Edenton this weekend at how much cotton was opening on that early planted cotton.
- This week with the summer like heat and dry conditions, I expect to see a lot of the early planted Virginia fields to begin showing some boll opening.
- Of course, soil type and rainfall patterns will no doubt create variability in when to expect full maturity.
- At this point, we are ahead of the last two years and more like 2019 in terms of heat and yield potential. It could still be that special year, but we really need some rain to finish the crop off as well as a nice dry fall.
- The cotton planted during April and May has entered the countdown for maturity.
- Perhaps the only cotton that needs insect monitoring would be the cotton that emerged well into June.
- The early June cotton looks very advanced and even some blooms that stick today should be close to mature by Mid-October if you wait on it.
- Remember that late blooms on early planting dates do not count for much because we defoliate that before they mature, but on the late dates they are part of the primary ‘6 week of bloom’ bolls.
