{"id":2564,"date":"2026-06-04T16:00:51","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T20:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/?p=2564"},"modified":"2026-06-04T16:00:51","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T20:00:51","slug":"cotton-update-6-4-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/2026\/06\/cotton-update-6-4-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Cotton Update 6\/4\/2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Jassids<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As of today (6\/4\/26), no Jassids have been detected in Georgia. Dr. Roberts, his crew, and many agents across South Georgia have been scouting, but we haven’t found any yet. We will continue to monitor and track them throughout the season. I think it was July 10th when we discovered them last year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Early Season Root Growth<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Cotton plants allocate a substantial portion of early-season photosynthates to root development. The root system is essential for supplying the water and nutrients required to support photosynthesis and leaf expansion. For instance, by the time cotyledons emerge, the taproot can extend up to 10 inches deep, and root growth continues rapidly until flowering begins. At flowering, the plant shifts resource allocation toward boll production, which greatly slows or may even stop root growth. Early-season temperature conditions, similar to their effects on germination and emergence, play a critical role in both root development and canopy formation. Minimizing stress during this period is therefore essential to promote strong root systems and vigorous canopy growth. Figure A illustrates how optimal (86\/68 \u00b0F) and suboptimal (68\/59 \u00b0F) day\/night temperature regimes affect cotton root and shoot development; both plants are 2 weeks old. Suboptimal temperatures reduce root growth and significantly inhibit leaf area expansion. Figure B shows that, two weeks after planting, plants with greater root length also tend to have greater leaf area, demonstrating a strong positive relationship between root and shoot development. *Figures A & B are from Dr. Snider<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Mid or Full Season Variety?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Another topic I have been receiving questions about is whether to switch from a mid- or full-season cotton variety to a short-season variety now that we have entered June. In Georgia, one of our greatest advantages is the length of the growing season, which provides flexibility in situations like this. It is also important to recognize that cotton differs from crops such as corn or soybeans. In cotton, we can often manage the crop for a shorter season through in-season practices rather than relying solely on selecting a shorter-maturity variety. Over the past three years, we have evaluated short- versus full-season varieties in multiple studies. DP 2012 B3XF has served as our representative short-season variety, while DG 3799 B3XF has represented a full-season type. We assessed maturity by collecting percent open boll counts every two weeks, which allowed us to estimate days to maturity relative to planting date. Across these trials, the difference in maturity between the two varieties has been no more than about 10 days. In terms of yield, both varieties have performed similarly when planted during the first two weeks of June and properly defoliated prior to a frost event. Given that these results compare two ends of the maturity spectrum, the difference between a mid-maturing and short-season variety would likely be even less noticeable. Additionally, there are effective in-season management strategies, such as more aggressive plant growth regulator (PGR) use and reduced nitrogen rates, that can help accelerate maturity regardless of variety selection. For now, switching to a short-season variety solely because it is June is not necessary. However, as we move beyond the second week of June, that recommendation may need to be reconsidered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jassids As of today (6\/4\/26), no Jassids have been detected in Georgia. Dr. Roberts, his crew, and many agents across South Georgia have been scouting, but we haven’t found any yet. We will continue to monitor and track them throughout the season. I think it was July 10th when we discovered them last year. Early […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":277,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2564","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2564","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/277"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2564"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2564\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2566,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2564\/revisions\/2566"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/tiftcoag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}