Cotton growing in North Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, while maturing rapidly, still has problems.
Setbacks earlier in the growing season from excessive wind and rain, coupled with a period of dry weather, are the main culprits in the crop's growing season, according to reports from agronomists at Texas A&M and Oklahoma State University.
Reports from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, dated Sept. 7, 2008, find only 10 percent of Texas cotton in excellent condition. Oklahoma cotton reports only 11 percent in excellent condition and Kansas with 10 percent.
Results of the weekly survey show Texas cotton conditions at 31 percent good, 32 percent fair, 18 percent poor and nine percent in very poor condition.
Oklahoma's crop is in similar condition with 34 percent good, 38 percent fair, 13 percent poor and four percent in very poor condition.
Kansas' cotton crop shows 50 percent in good condition, 25 percent in fair condition, 10 percent poor and five percent in very poor condition.
At the same time of year in 2007, 10 percent of the Texas cotton was reported to be excellent, 39 percent in good condition, 28 percent fair, 14 percent poor and six percent in very poor condition.
USDA estimates for the 2008-09 cotton crop are 35,000 harvested acres in Kansas, 170,000 harvested Oklahoma acres and 3,400,000 harvested acres in Texas.
Average yield in harvested pounds of lint per acre for the 2008 crop are estimated to be 603 pounds in Kansas, 819 pounds in Oklahoma and 734 pounds in Texas, according to the USDA-NASS August, 2008, crop production report.
In Kansas, 100 percent of the cotton is setting bolls, Oklahoma has 99 percent and Texas 95 percent.
Bolls opening this week are 21 percent in Texas, 29 percent in Oklahoma and 15 percent in Kansas. These figures are comparable to the same week in 2007 with 24 percent open then in Texas, 15 percent in Oklahoma and one percent in Kansas, according to the USDA report.
This report is courtesy of NTOK Cotton, a cotton industry partnership which supports and encourages cotton production in North Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas.For more information on the cotton scene, see okiecotton.org and ntokcotton.org.