Agricultural News
OSU's Seth Byrd Talks Cotton: Oklahoma Trial Results and Where We are in the Cycle
Wed, 23 Feb 2022 11:19:25 CST
With each swing from T-shirt weather to freezing temperatures, we get a little bit closer to spring. Although Oklahoma will not see any cotton planted for another 90 days, producers are likely in the process of picking out seed varieties and praying for drought to subside. With Oklahoma's cotton trial results in, producers can look at what worked in 2021.
KC Sheperd, senior farm director for the Oklahoma Farm Report, spoke with Seth Byrd, a cooperative extension cotton agronomist at Oklahoma State University, about what the 2021 cotton crop tells us about the future of this year's cotton crop.
"We got the trial reports, and it was variable," Byrd said. "It reflected the weather we had."
Ultimately, dryland cotton yields were good, while irrigated cotton yields were variable, Byrd said. 2021 was a year where being in an irrigated district did not carry the same weight that it has in other years, he added.
Overall, Oklahoma cotton was good, according to Byrd. In most trials, the average Micronaire was in the premium range.
"2021 was a very unique year," Byrd said. "You had this combination of weather conditions that were abnormal - we were behind on head units through the first three months of the season, we were ahead on rainfall - we had some struggles with the weather, but then you had this really strong price."
Looking ahead, one of the biggest factors to consider is drought. Current drought conditions in Oklahoma are bad and are forecast to get worse. At the same time, Oklahoma is just months away from its rainy season and folks across the Southern Plains have their fingers crossed.
Other issues to consider are supply chain issues and high input costs. With that said, producers need to do their homework, including doing extensive soil tests, according to Byrd.
Hit the LISTEN BAR below to hear KC Sheperd and Seth Byrd talk about Oklahoma's 2021 cotton crop, what the future looks like it will hold for the 2022 crop and where producers should be in their planning process now.
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