Defoliating the 2025 crop just became more difficult. While you wait for your fields to dry, I’ve got a document that I believe may come in handy over the next few weeks. Each year, the MidSouth Cotton Specialists’ Working Group generate a defoliation guide. This document is a collaborative effort between Dr. Bradley Wilson (Missouri), Mr. Tyler Sandlin and Dr. Joshua Lee (Alabama), Dr. Brian Pieralisi (Mississippi), Dr. Shelly Kerns (Louisiana), and Dr. Zachary Treadway (Arkansas).
The 2025 document is just short of a complete rewrite and is worth your time to peruse. I’m particularly proud of the breakdown of the factors which influence plant response to product and rate along with the decision matrix and the streamlined program product selection guide. Special thanks to each of the authors for their time on this revision!
I’ve spent several days over the past week making my way through much of Tennessee’s cotton. In this blog, I share a few observations, several thoughts on where we are, and attempt to set expectations for the 2025 crop. 
The leaf spot complex is having a heyday. In this blog, Dr. Kelly and I explain why we may be seeing a relatively high level of incidence this year and what you should do about it. Spoiler alert, the best action for it is, fortunately, inaction.