Reducing At-Planting Costs in Cotton Production Through Hill-Dropped Seed Placement and Precision Application of In-Furrow Insecticides

A significant portion of the total production costs of cotton, are the at-planting costs, which have drastically increased due to the development of elite cultivars and the associated gene technology packages. Defining new techniques that reduce these at-planting costs, while maintaining lint yield and fiber quality, may present substantial costs savings to growers across the cotton belt. A technique that has been proven to achieve these objectives, is the hill-dropped placement of cottonseed at planting. Additional costs savings could be achieved if in-furrow granular insecticides were applied only to the seed hills, to avoid wasteful application to the space between the seed hills. Precision application of in-furrow insecticides in hill-dropped cotton was investigated during 2006, 2007, and 2008 in North Carolina. Cottonseed was planted in a hill-dropped formation with 3 seeds per hill, and hills spaced 16 inches apart. Insecticide treatments consisted of granular Temik 5G applied at 3 lbs/A and 6 lbs/A in 1) a solid band, 2) a 6-inch-long band (twice the average length of a seed hill), and 3) a 3-inch-long band (covering only the seed hill). These treatments were compared to Avicta Complete-Pac seed treatment, with and without a subsequent application of Orthene 97 at 3 weeks after planting, no in-furrow insecticide followed by Orthene 97 applied at 3 weeks after planting, and a non-treated control. Data suggests that significant costs savings, optimal thrips control, and optimal plant growth can be achieved through precision application of in-furrow insecticides or seed treatments, while maintaining optimal lint yield and fiber quality.