What a difference a year makes! This time last year we had almost no cotton planted and really only got a good start on May 20th. As of May 14th, this year, my best guess is that we are well over 85% planted state wide with many folks finished. Moreover much of this cotton is now emerged to a good stand. The big rain event this morning has put a halt to planting but was needed as the soil was very dry in spots.
It will be several days before we can get back into the field now to finish up planting or (hopefully not) replant. I think we all re-learned this last fall that Tennessee is on the northern edge of the cotton belt and that we do not have a growing season that will allow us to plant medium season cotton varieties like PHY 499, ST 5458 and DP 0920 in Mid-May (or later) and get them to finish before we run out of DD60s.
The early maturity varieties like AM 1550, DP 0912, DP 1311, FM 1944, PHY 333, PHY 339, PHY 375 and ST 4946 would be the varieties of choice to plant next week. Hopefully we can wrap up cotton planting next week. If we get delayed later than next week then go to the earliest of that group which would be DP 0912, DP 1311, PHY 333 and PHY 367. Darrin Dodds of Mississippi State University has put together a very good cotton maturity guide (MSU Cotton Maturity Guide) that can be useful in making variety switching decisions. In general go with the varieties on his chart that are in the green.
In the rush to finish next week while switching intended cotton varieties be mindful of variety placement. For example if you switch from say a PHY 499 to PHY 367 to get that earlier maturity be aware that PHY 367, though early, will not perform near as well on a Crockett or Haywood county eroded hill side like PHY 499 would. Another early season variety would probably be a better fit in that situation. If the variety is new to you it would be a good idea to contact your county agent, cotton seed company representative or your retailer before you plant it.
