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Everything you need to know about Cotton fertilization, best practice, suitable products, field trials and more.
Advice for growing Cotton (Gossypium spp.)
Cotton, a vital global crop, displays unique features that influence its growth and productivity. It boasts a taproot system, enabling access to deep soil nutrients and enhancing drought tolerance. Cotton exhibits two branch patterns: basal vegetative and distal fruiting branches, which play crucial roles in boll development and yield. Nutrition, particularly macronutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, is essential for robust cotton growth. Managing deficiencies and maintaining soil health are integral to maximizing yield and quality parameters, including fiber length, strength, and micronaire. Redding, a condition leading to leaf reddening, and boll development are key growth stages. Increasing cotton yield involves efficient nutrient, pest and disease management, improved agronomic practices, and precision farming techniques to ensure a profitable and sustainable cotton industry.
- Ideal cotton soil is deep, fertile, humus-rich, well drained and having good water holding capacity (WHC); cotton is sensitive to excess moisture and waterlogging.
- Cotton grows best on neutral to slightly alkaline soils, with an optimum pH of 7.0 to 8.0.
- In soil with pH values above 7.5, deficiencies of B, Cu, Fe, Mn, P, and Zn may occur. Conversely, pH values below 5.5 make cotton prone to P, Mo, and Ca deficiencies.
- Optimum temperature ranges for cotton: 20-30°C for germination, 21-27°C for vegetative growth, and 21-25°C for peak flowering. Cotton can withstand high temperatures of 43-45°C for short periods under adequate soil moisture.
- High temperatures above 40°C negatively impact cotton growth and development, but cotton can tolerate varying levels of drought.
- Depending on the climate and crop-growing period, cotton requires 700 to 1200 mm of water. Water needs are low during the first 60 to 70 days after sowing and highest during flowering and boll development. Improper water supply leads to moisture stress, resulting in low yield, including premature flower drop and poor boll development.
Nutrient requirements (as per Crop Advisor)
| Nutrient | N | P | K | Ca | Mg | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kg/Acre | 55 | 24 | 30 | 15 | 5 | 27 |
| Micronutrient | Fe | Zn | B | Cu | Mn |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kg/Acre | 1.56 | 1.25 | 0.60 | 0.10 | 0.40 |
Role of nutrients
| Key Parameters | N | P | K | Ca | Mg | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vegetative Growth Stage | ++ | ++ | + | + | + | + |
| Boll Development stage | + | ++ | + | + | ||
| Fiber Quality | ++ | + | ||||
| Fiber Strength | + | |||||
| Yield | + | + | + | + | + | + |
Nutrient deficiencies
Nitrogen:
Nitrogen deficiency plants display stunted growth, pale, chlorotic leaves, poor root system, early leaf drying, early flowering, slow squaring and flowering, and delayed boll maturity.
Phosphorus:
Older leaves show chlorotic tissue with bronze to purple discoloration, starting at the marginal areas and spreading along the leaf veins. Growth is stunted.
Potassium:
Older leaves show interveinal chlorosis with beginning leaf scorch spreading from the marginal area to the center. Subsequently the areas become necrotic and leaves dry and shed prematurely.
Calcium:
Calcium deficiency occurs in early crop stages, causing leaf petioles to bend, collapse, and develop deformed, chlorotic leaves at the growing tip, affecting both cotyledons and true leaf stages.
Magnesium:
Magnesium deficiency in cotton shows interveinal chlorosis with sharply bordered green veins. Symptoms occur on mature leaves first. The reddening occurs due to reduced photosynthetic activity of the plant, which may be due to immobilization of Mg in cotton.
Sulphur:
Sulphur deficiency causes new leaves to turn yellow, while old ones remain green due to inability to transfer Sulphur to growth points. Symptoms are similar to nitrogen deficiency, affecting small, spindly plants.
Zinc:
Dwarfism and reduced growth are the most prominent indicators. Leaves show interveinal chlorosis and reduced size. Internodes shorten, resulting in a bushy appearance, and first true leaves may exhibit bronzing.
Iron:
Iron deficiency may appear as leaf veins remaining somewhat green, while uppermost leaves become chlorotic and bleached because Fe is not readily transferred from older to younger tissues.
Boron:
Boron deficiency in cotton plants can cause distorted terminals, abnormal upper leaves, and aborted flowers. Symptoms of a boron shortage may include an appearance with dark rings on the leaf petiole, flower abortion, and boll shedding, which may contribute to excessive stalk growth.
Manganese:
Manganese deficiency in coastal plain soils can lead to interveinal chlorosis in younger leaves due to the inability of Mn to be easily transferred between tissues.
Copper:
Copper deficient plants have high soluble-N compounds due to impaired protein synthesis, chlorotic growth, and severe deficiency, leading to Fe accumulation in plants. Cu uptake is inversely related to Fe uptake.
Molybdenum:
Symptoms appear as small dead tissue spots at the leaf tip. Mo availability increases with pH, and most cotton-growing soils are alkaline, making Mo deficiency non-problem for vertisols.
Crop Nutrition in Cotton
| Stages of Crop | Basal Application | Foliar Application | Fertigation Application |
|---|---|---|---|
| At the time of planting/Emergence Stage | Polysulphate: 75 Kg 12:32:16/10:26:26: 100 Kg | ||
| Establishment Stage | Nutrivant Starter: 5 gm/L Select Zn: 0.5 to 1 gm/L | Fertiflow 7:50:7+2Zn/ Fertiflow Grow 12:36:6+3MgO+4S : 3 Kg (2 Dose) |
|
| Vegetative Growth Stage | Nutrivant Booster: 5 gm/L Select B: 0.5 gm/L | Fertiflow 12:6:22+12CaO/ Fertiflow Grow 12:36:6+3MgO+4S : 5 Kg (3 Dose) |
|
| Flowering Stage | Nutrivant Fruit: 5 gm/L Select B: 0.5 gm/L | MagPhos 0:55:18+7MgO/ Fertiflow Bloom 8:24:24+4MgO+6S : 5 Kg (3 Dose) |
|
| Boll dvelopment to Maturity Stage | Nutrivant Peakvant: 5 gm/L | Pekacid/ Hi Peak : 5 Kg (2 Dose) and Potassium+ : 5 Kg (3 Dose) |
Q&A
Here are some frequently asked questions we received from farmers regarding Cotton.
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Regular soil testing, proper fertilization, and monitoring for nutrient deficiencies are key. Additionally, maintaining balanced nutrition and pH levels is essential for healthy cotton growth and maximum yield.
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The most significant deficiency in cotton plants that farmers encounter is nitrogen deficiency. It’s easily recognizable when the leaves turn pale yellowish-green and start shrinking.
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Several environmental factors affect cotton growth. Low population density, insect and disease pressure, and overfertilization can induce the formation of vegetative branches, although a cotton plant’s primary focus is on fruiting branches.
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Magnesium is crucial for cotton due to its role in chlorophyll production, supporting photosynthesis and activating enzymes for metabolic processes, promoting plant growth. It also prevents reddening and maintains a healthy, green appearance.
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Magnesium is crucial for crop production as it forms the chlorophyll molecule in plant tissue. Deficit leads to stunted growth and reduced photosynthetic activity, possibly due to magnesium immobilization in cotton. It also activates enzyme systems, preventing reddening and promoting plant growth.
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Nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, boron, calcium, and magnesium are essential nutrients for cotton boll formation. Nitrogen supports plant growth, phosphorus supports flower initiation, potassium promotes development, boron helps pollen germination and calcium enhances boll wall strength.
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Balancing nutrition with these essential elements is crucial. Potassium supports boll development and size by promoting cell expansion and plant health. Calcium strengthens boll walls, reducing rot and increasing weight, while magnesium indirectly boosts boll size through photosynthesis support. Boron aids pollen germination, resulting in better boll set and increased weight and size.
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Sulphur is a crucial nutrient in cotton, enhancing seed weight by facilitating protein and amino acid synthesis. These essential nutrients contribute to cottonseed formation, size, and weight, and also aid in reproductive development, resulting in larger cottonseeds.
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Cotton exhibits two branching patterns. Basal vegetative branches are monopodial, extending the main stem. On the other hand, distal fruiting branches are sympodial inflorescences, each comprising a terminal boll-generating flower, a subtending leaf, and an axillary bud for the next sympodial unit.
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Cotton plants have a taproot system. This deep and robust root system helps cotton access water and nutrients from deeper soil layers, making it more resilient during drought conditions and contributing to overall crop health and growth.
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The quality parameters in cotton are essential factors in cotton production:
Fiber Length: The length of cotton fibers, usually measured in inches or millimeters, is a critical determinant of cotton quality. Longer fibers are typically more desirable.
Micronaire Value: Micronaire is a measure of the fineness and maturity of cotton fibers. It affects spinning and thread quality.
Fiber Strength: The strength of cotton fibers is vital for textile durability. It is measured in terms of g/tex.
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The yield parameters in cotton are essential factors in cotton production:
Boll Count: The number of cotton bolls per unit area significantly influences yield.
Boll Weight: The average weight of individual cotton bolls, typically measured in grams or ounces, affects yield.
Lint Yield: The amount of lint (cotton fiber) harvested per acre or hectare is a key yield parameter.
Seed Cotton Yield: This parameter considers both the lint and seed yield, as cotton plants produce seeds along with fibers.
Overall Crop Yield: The total cotton crop yield per unit area is a primary measure of the success of cotton production.
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There are four cultivated species of cotton viz. Gossypium arboreum, G. herbaceum, G. hirsutum and G. barbadense. India is the only country in the world where all four cultivated species are grown on a commercial scale.
