Evaluation of Upland Cotton Fibers Producing Superior Yarn

Improvements in spinning technology and competition from man-made fibers require that plant breeders continue to improve the yarn making qualities of upland cotton in order to maintain the global competitiveness of U.S. producers. The Cotton Improvement Lab, Texas AgriLife Research, has developed and released a number of extra long staple upland strains that produce yarn with superior strength to that produced by current upland cultivars. A number of sister lines that have fiber lengths only slightly longer than Fibermax 832 or Deltapine 491 have been developed recently that produce 30Ne count carded yarn that has 26 to 35% greater yarn tenacity. These lines, designated TAM WE-62-x, have slightly finer fibers, probably allowing more fibers per cross section of yarn, and fiber bundle strengths up to 8 g/tex greater than Fibermax 832. Yield, HVI and AFIS fiber properties, and yarn properties will be presented.