Systems Agronomic and Economic Evaluation of Cotton Varieties in ...

Results and Discussion:Agronomic data including plant population, boll storm resistance and final plantmap data are included in Tables 1-3.Significant differences were noted for most yield and economic parameters (Table4). Lint turnout averaged 35.1% with a high of 37.6% for NexGen 1511B2RF andCroplan Genetics 3787B2RF with a low of 33.1% for NexGen 4010B2RF. Burcotton yield averaged 3222 lb/acre and ranged from a high of 3390 lb/acre forFiberMax 2484B2F to a low of 2952 lb/acre for Croplan 3787B2RF. Lint yieldsvaried from a low of 1040 lb/acre (NexGen 4010B2RF) to a high of 1221 lb/acre(Dyna-Gro 2570B2RF). Lint loan values averaged $0.5305/lb across varieties,but differences were not significant. When adding lint and seed value, totalvalues ranged from a high of $904.01/acre for Dyna-Gro 2570B2RF to a low of$803.65/acre for Deltapine 0912B2RF. After subtracting ginning, seed costs andtechnology fees, the net value/acre among varieties ranged from a high of$727.72/acre (Dyna-Gro 2570B2RF) to a low of $631.34/acre (Deltapine0912B2RF), a difference of $96.38.Significant differences were observed among varieties for most fiber qualityparameters measured at this location (Table 5). Micronaire values ranged from alow of 3.4 for FiberMax 2484B2F to a high of 4.4 for NexGen 1511B2RF. Stapleaveraged 34.4 across all varieties with a high of 36.9 for FiberMax 2484B2F and alow of 33.5 for NexGen 1511B2RF. Uniformity differences were not significantand a test average of 81.2% was observed. Strength ranged from a low of 27.4g/tex for Croplan Genetics 3787B2RF to a high of 31.2 g/tex for All-Tex Nitro-44B2RF. Elongation averaged 10.8% across varieties and leaf grades averaged2.7 with a high of 4.0 for All-Tex Nitro-44 B2RF and a low of 1.0 for CroplanGenetics 3787B2RF. Color grade components of Rd (reflectance) and +b(yellowness) averaged 76.6 and 9.3, respectively and resulted in color grades ofmostly 21 and 31.These data indicate that substantial differences can be obtained in terms of netvalue/acre due to variety selection. Additional multi-site and multi-year appliedresearch is needed to evaluate varieties across a series of environments.Acknowledgments:Disclaimer Clause:Appreciation is expressed to Rhett Mimms for the use of his land, equipment andlabor for this demonstration. Further assistance with this project was provided byDr. Jane Dever - Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center, Lubbock,and Dr. Eric Hequet - Associate Director, Fiber and Biopolymer Research Institute,Texas Tech University. Furthermore, we greatly appreciate the TexasDepartment of Agriculture - Food and Fiber Research for funding of HVI testing.Trade names of commercial products used in this report are included only forbetter understanding and clarity. Reference to commercial products or tradenames is made with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and noendorsement by the Texas A&M System is implied. Readers should realize thatresults from one experiment do not represent conclusive evidence that the sameresponse would occur where conditions vary.59