Deficit Irrigation and Tillage Effects on Lint Yield and Profitability of Four Cotton Cultivars in the Texas Rolling Plains

Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is a drought tolerant crop. However, severe water stress during the growing season could result in devastating effects on cotton yield and lint quality. The objectives of this research were 1) test the response of four cotton cultivars to different irrigation regimes and two tillage systems in the Texas Rolling Plains, and 2) determine the best deficit irrigation strategy that is profitable under the growing conditions in the Texas Rolling Plains. Field studies were conducted on an Abilene clay loam soil at the Texas AgriLife Research station near Chillicothe, TX in 2012 and 2013. The filed plots were irrigated using a sub-surface drip irrigation system. The main plot treatment was irrigation, sub-plot treatment was tillage, and sub-sub plot treatment was cultivars types. The irrigation treatments included 1) 90% evapotranspiration (ET) 2) 45% ET replacement 3) ET-replacement based on a remote sensing method, and 4) dryland. The tillage treatments were conventional and minimum tillage systems. Four cotton cultivars were tested PHY499, DP1044, PHY375, and FM9170. In this presentation, we will discuss results of this study.