Site-Specific Management of Cotton Root Rot Using Historical Remote Sensing Imagery

Cotton root rot can now be effectively controlled with Topguard Terra Fungicide, but site-specific application of the fungicide can greatly reduce treatment cost as only portions of the field are infested with the disease. The overall goal of this three-year project was to demonstrate how to use historical remote sensing imagery and variable rate technology for site-specific application of the fungicide. Procedures were developed for creating binary prescription maps from historical airborne and satellite imagery. Two different variable rate liquid control systems were adapted to two existing cotton planters, respectively, for site-specific fungicide application. One system was used for site-specific application on study fields near Edroy, Texas and the other on study fields near San Angelo, Texas. Airborne multispectral imagery taken during the growing seasons was used to monitor the performance of the site-specific treatments. Three years of field experiments showed that the variable rate systems performed well and site-specific fungicide treatments effectively controlled cotton root rot. Newly infested areas within the fields were identified by the airborne imagery in 2015 and then added to the prescription maps in 2017. On the basis of the results of this multi-year research, a bulletin guide has been developed and published to provide cotton growers, crop consultants, and agricultural dealers with practical guidelines for implementing site-specific Topguard Terra application using historical imagery and variable rate technology for effective management of cotton root rot.