July 7, 2009 - Insect pressure (plantbugs) is moderately low but they are increasing.  3 to 5% of fields meeting square retention concerns.  Not enough rain to change the growth rate of cotton.  If no boron is used in fertilizer, then first foliar spray should be made at early bloom.  Almost all April planted cotton is blooming.  Early May planted cotton just beginning to bloom.

We are in a little bit of a lull for the cotton season. The vast majority of the cotton fields are growing at a very slow pace. Most of the region got between 2 and 3 tenths of an inch of rain on Sunday. Further down into North Carolina the rainfall was heavier, but for most of our area, the most we got was around a half inch and that was isolated. 

Generally the fast growing cotton has already received some Pix, but most of the cotton has never gotten Pix and still does not need any. The plantbugs have been building up at a slow rate. It looks like we have pretty good square retention. I think as cotton begins to bloom, it will be easy to tell if you have an insect problem by inspecting blooms to determine if you have any dirty blooms which is nothing more than some brown discoloration inside the white flowers after they open. 

There are some scattered fields that have dropped below 80% square retention. As a result, farmers should be inspecting cotton fields for square retention, dirty blooms. If you make a trip over the field for something else you can easily piggy back a pyrethroid or Bidrin to offer control of insects. I would not put Pix on cotton just because you are going over the field. Cotton is generally growing so slow that it will take a soaking rain to change the growth rate.