Border Rivers
Stuart McFadyen
Defoliation this season was delayed due to significant rainfall during the first week of April, as growers opted to keep the leaves on the crop to help dry the profile before picking. Temperatures remained favourable for defoliation in the following weeks, and once started, the leaf drop progressed rapidly. Yields this season are in line with the 10-year average and improve as the plantings get later, ranging from 10 bales/ha on back-to-back fields to over 13 bales/ha on later-planted irrigated fields. Despite the dry finish to the flowering season, dryland cotton yields this season are well above average, with reports of 4.5-6 bale/ha.
Local varietal trials this season are showing that the new XtendFlex® lines are comparable in irrigation to the current Bollgard lines. In dryland, the new Sicot619B3XF is continuing to outperform the popular Sicot 748B3F, and in softer seasons and cooler areas, CSX 1375B3XF is proving to be a yield-boosting. This gives growers the benefit of utilising the XtendFlex herbicide technology for greater weed control.
The outlook for next season suggests another large cotton season throughout the valley, both in irrigation and dryland. Although Pindari Dam levels remain at 50%, there is significant water held in on-farm storages due to the substantial rainfall events this season.
Bourke
Craig McDonald
The Bourke region has experienced a wetter-than-usual season. There has been 351mm of rain, with 95 days above 36°C. Both figures exceed the long-term average, with the rainfall nearly 100mm above the norm. There were 40 days above 40°C, which is close to average. Day degrees, Base 12 and 15/32, also surpassed long-term figures.
Insect pressure was generally light, with some spraying required during the season. Insects, nutrition and crop growth were monitored and managed effectively, allowing fields to progress well throughout the growing period.
It was a season of contrasts, starting with a very dry start leading up to planting, followed by good rain in late October. This allowed for more cotton to be planted into early November. Initially, some fields were at risk of being dropped due to limited water. However, timely in-crop rain and river flows helped sustain these crops through to picking.
The planned area for the next season will increase compared to 2023-24, with much of the cotton to be grown in fallow fields. These fields are now in good condition and will be ready for planting in spring.
Picking is ongoing with some rain delays and waiting for bolls to fully open. Up to four defoliations have been required in some fields. The CSD B3 XtendFlex® trial was picked on the 24th April, and ginning results are pending. The push is now on completing picking and ginning. Yields so far have been encouraging.
Central Queensland
Kim Stevens & Nick Stewart
Cotton harvesting is in full swing this May across the Central Highlands, with activities also commencing in the Dawson/Callide regions. The early harvest in Central Queensland (CQ) has yielded between 7.5 to 11 bales per hectare for traditional growing period crops. Despite a challenging season marked by severe monsoonal weather impacting the latter stages of boll development, conditions have improved since March. The Emerald area, in particular, has enjoyed optimal temperatures for cotton and a reduction in rainy days. Conversely, the Dawson region has not fared as well, with persistent rainfall every 10 days leading to a suboptimal end to the season, causing the upper bolls to open during wet periods and affecting the second growth phase. Wet fields have also led to considerable soil compaction during picking.
The favourable climate in the Central Highlands has provided an outstanding opportunity for late boll development in long-season crops, with some receiving their final irrigation in April. These advantageous conditions have facilitated excellent defoliation, setting up the majority of long season crops for harvesting from April through to June in CQ.
To date, long-season cotton yields across CQ have ranged from 10 to 16.5 bales per hectare, with most Central Highland crops averaging 13-14 bales per hectare. This marks a significant improvement over traditional crops and reflects the innovation and commitment of local growers and the agricultural sector.
A notable aspect of this season’s harvest is the encouraging performance of new Bollgard 3 varieties containing XtendFlex®, including the okra-leaf Siokra 253B3XF, which has been grown in CQ for the first time. Results of these trials will be on the website as soon as they become available.
A smaller area was dedicated to dryland and walk-away skip-row cotton this season, which seemed to withstand the monsoonal weather better than conventionally irrigated cotton. Although a dry spell towards the season’s end condensed the flowering window, these crops have concluded strongly, with some already picked showing yields of approximately four bales per hectare, and more awaiting picking.
As the agricultural community in CQ is engrossed in picking, harvesting, and sowing winter crops, the region is a hive of activity. Looking ahead, there’s a palpable sense of optimism as we near the season’s conclusion, with only about 10% of the crops remaining to be defoliated. After a lengthy season, it’s rewarding to see the pickers in full operation.
Darling Downs
Larissa Holland
The tail end of the cotton season has arrived once again, with ground rigs and spray planes out in earnest defoliating crops, and pickers in the fields seeing growers reap the rewards of this year’s efforts. End of season have created challenges for some growers, leading to boll rot and tight lock. Boll counts in irrigated fields are down from previous years due to a combination of cloudy weather at the onset of flowering and crops losing fruit at the top due to the aforementioned rainfall. However, in skip row configurations and dryland crops, boll counts are looking phenomenal, marking a great finish after a less-than-promising start back in October/November.
Defoliation coinciding with rainfall has resulted in some reports of leaf freeze and subsequent difficulty in removing leaves. This season, three hits to get leaf off were not usual. There has also been regrowth in crops likely helped by ample soil moisture and nitrogen levels. Pickers have been active since March on the Downs but have picked up steam moving into May after delays due to rain. Early indications on yields in irrigated crops estimate 10 – 12 bales/ha, while in dryland, yields above 6 bales/ha are common, with higher yields of 8 and 9 bales/ha also reported. Quality results are still uncertain, though, with leaf freeze, quality regarding leaf could be higher than ideal. We will have to wait for classing results to come through.
Early indications from varieties containing XtendFlex® in CSD variety trials point towards a good showing for the new okra line Siokra253B3XF in its first year in the region, alongside Sicot 761B3XF. At this time, it is unclear which variety topped the trial based on area and weight alone. Picking will continue into June and July, so more information is forthcoming regarding the best fit for the area.
Far North Queensland
Jodie Perdana
In Far North Queensland, crops have been planted in the Tablelands, Forty Mile, Burdekin Valley, Leichardt River and Flinders region near Julia Creek and Richmond.
While planting in the Tablelands was completed during December and January, other regions in North Queensland planted during late January and into March, due to continuous wet conditions. Towns in the Gulf region such as Doomadgee, Burketown & Normanton, closer to the coast have endured near-constant rain since mid-December, making it impossible to establish any crops in those flooded areas.
Despite facing four cyclones and heavy rainfall from December to March in the North this season, some of the earlier planted cotton is showing very good fruit retention, filling bolls nicely and looking quite remarkable.
The CSD XtendFlex® trial in the Tablelands at Dimbulah recovered well after early flooding, and the new varieties, especially the new, Siokra 253B3XF (CSX4389B3XF), are looking very promising. The Okra leaf has allowed more sunlight into the canopy, and it will be interesting to see if this results in yield benefits, especially if it reduces potential losses from boll rot at the backend of the season in the Tablelands when the weather can turn cool with drizzly rain.
Pest pressure in cotton has been relatively light, with all the usual suspects such as cluster caterpillars (litura), aphids, spider mites and the Harlequin Bug frequenting crops in the Tablelands. Further west in the Gulf, locusts and rats have continued to cause problems for growers following consecutive wet seasons.
Seasonal weather conditions significantly influence the incidence and severity of cotton diseases in the Tropics. With cooler overnight temperatures during April and May, we are starting to see the presence of disease like Alternaria and Target spot, but these are currently less problematic than in past seasons.
From April to May, most cotton crops in the North reached cut out and defoliation is expected to commence during June in the Tablelands and Burdekin Valley. Growers and agronomists are hoping for clear skies and ample sunshine as defoliation and picking approaches.
Many farms in the Gulf have full moisture profiles, presenting good opportunities for winter crop plantings, especially for those who didn’t get much of a cotton crop planted this season.
May was a busy time for field days, workshops, and variety trial field walks across the North. CSD co-hosted a variety field walk at Dimbulah on the Tablelands on the 23 May 2024, which had great interest, attendees were able to view some of the new varieties containing XtendFlex® and how they have performed under Tropical North Queensland conditions.
Gwydir Valley
Stuart McFadyen
Favourable defoliation conditions have helped with leaf drop this season, and picking is progressing well despite some showers that have seen good amounts of winter crop hectares planted. This season’s yield are in line with expectations, ranging from 11-13 bale/ hectare for irrigated crops and 3.5-4.5 bale/hectare for dryland. Many growers were hoping for higher yields, but the exceptionally hot season and persistent heat waves inevitably had an impact.
There are some exceptions, particularly in grown-on fields that received late irrigation and continued to develop top fruit through early March. These fields have been given time to mature and are achieving yields of over 14 bales/ha in some cases. Similarly, later planted dryland crops on well-managed fallows escaped the heat in January and tapped into deep soil moisture through February. These crops, which filled bolls as the rainfall ceased, are yet to be picked but look promising.
Trial results indicate that the new XtendFlex® lines are comparable with current Bollgard 3 lines in irrigation and are giving growers more varietal options for next seasons plantings. The local dryland mainstay variety, Sicot 748B3F, has again been soundly outperformed by the new Sicot 619B3XF this season in local trials. This gives dryland growers an opportunity to enhance their yields with a strong establishing, and quick maturing variety that also adds extra weed control options to their toolkit.
Next season is expected to see another large planting effort for the Gwydir Valley, and bed preparations for next season are progressing well with recent falls melting clods, breaking down crop residues and consolidating beds. The dryland hectares locally will remain high despite substantial winter plantings. Late chickpeas look enticing to growers on the back of good winter rainfall so far; however, a lack of product supply could convert those hectares to dryland cotton given the continued varietal improvements and increased weed control options of Sicot 619B3XF.
Macquarie Valley
Amanda Thomas
As of the 15th of April, the Macquarie Valley is approximately 67 % of the way through picking. It is over 87% done in the north of the valley and around 47% done in the central and southern ends. There have been a number of weather systems that have impacted the progress, which was evident earlier in the window.
The gins are reporting they are between 12 -15% through ginning. Yards are full, and we are seeing a steady flow into the gins as picking continues to ramp up again.
Quality reports vary but for the most part range from 21-2’s to 31-4’s for colour. The are no micronaire issues, with 52% rated G5-3, and the remainder G5-2. Strength is predominantly 39 + staple length and colour is all 31-3-39 or better, with hardly any for leaf from the early ginned cotton.
It is early days for the yield predictions to be completely accurate, however the gins are reporting yields ranging from 11.5 – 17.3 bales per hectare near Warren. It will be a wait-and-see as we progress into the picking season.
While the rain has interrupted the picking season, it has been beneficial for the establishment of winter cereals, brassicas and chickpeas. There are plenty of tractors and spray rigs working around the clock to make the most of the conditions as soon as they are dry enough to get back on the fields.
In the 2023/24 season, 10 growers in the Macquarie Valley planted the new varieties containing XtendFlex® over a total of 870 hectares. Of these 870 hectares, 537 hectares across five farms received an application of XtendiMax® 2 herbicide, which contains a new formulation of dicamba herbicide. Growers who used it reported, “Weed control on difficult-to-control weeds such as fleabane has been excellent.”
While the final yield results from the two variety trials will be available soon, the classing results from one of the trials are already in, and the quality and turnouts of these varieties have been outstanding. Stay tuned for the CSD Growing Better Series: Seed & Sales Info Sessions in Warren and Narromine on the 17th of June to get the full results. Visit ww.csd.net.au/events to register.
Namoi Valley
Natalie Aquilina
As we head towards the end of May, the Namoi Valley is bustling with activity, with many growers applying final defoliation, picking fields and planting winter crops for the season ahead. Picking is around 50 to 60% completed, with small but consistent rainfall events causing picking to be a little more stop/start this season compared to last year’s ideal conditions.
Throughout the end of the growing season, conditions were mild, allowing crops throughout the valley to continue to fill late bolls and recover from early fruit loss events. However, the mild temperatures combined with rainfall have caused the defoliation period to be longer than usual for many and kept pickers out of the field. As a result, many growers saw an unfortunate reduction in quality, especially in colour and higher leaf matter.
Despite this, early yield averages have still been positive for many growers. In the Lower and Western Namoi cotton areas, growers have reported an average of 12 to 13 bales/ha for irrigated crops. The performance of dryland cotton crops is still uncertain, with much left to pick due to planting opportunities that didn’t come until December. Low in crop rainfall and hot, humid conditions throughout the flowering and boll filling periods will result in varied yields for dryland growers in this part of the Namoi.
The Upper Namoi still has a large portion of both irrigated and dryland cotton to be picked. Irrigated cotton crops are yielding 9 to 12 bales/ha depending on location within the valley. Early results for dryland yields are promising, with storm events over some fields resulting in higher in crop rainfall, averaging 5 to 6 bales/ha. This is a great result for the Upper Namoi considering the slow and cool start to the season for many growers.
Whilst overall yields for this season in the Namoi reflect that of a more average year, growers and consultants have noted the crops’ ability to compensate and perform well despite the challenges experienced this season. The new varieties containing XtendFlex® have performed consistently across the valley and we look forward to sharing results from our trials program soon.
Heading into the winter season with a wet forecast for the next few months, dryland cotton opportunities will be high with prices remaining strong. Irrigated growers will take advantage of the chance to refill storage dams and have already begun ground preparations for next season.
NT & WA
Angus Marshall
Northern Territory
We are fast approaching the end of the growing season in the NT with the first crops expected to be picked towards the end of the month. The wet season came to an abrupt end at the beginning of April, with some crops finishing with a staggering 2m of in-crop rainfall. Yields are expected to vary due to the sporadic nature of the wet season.
Crops continued to develop well into late March and early April while moisture was still available, some late-planted crops would have benefited from some April rainfall which unfortunately did not arrive. Pest pressure varied from crop to crop, Spodoptera Litura were in high numbers in isolated areas and Flower Feeding Weevils showed up in high numbers towards the middle of April.
It’s great to see the WANT cotton gin processing bales, another massive milestone reached for cotton production in the north.
Western Australia
Crops are progressing well in the Ord Irrigation Area with most crops in the flowering stage of development and recovering well from the wet conditions experienced during February and March. Night-time temperatures began to fall in April while daytime temperatures remained around 33°C on average, creating ideal growing conditions. This combined with relatively low pest pressure, has allowed crops to thrive in the Ord.
A recent XtendFlex® field walk saw growers observe the incumbent varieties first-hand, with significant interest in the Okra leaf variety Siokra253B2XF. All other varieties in the trial also looked spectacular and generated good discussion.
Crops planted in early February are expected to start cutting out in the coming weeks, with some late fertiliser being applied to give the crops an extra boost for boll filling.
SOUTHEAST QLD
Chris Barry
Burnett Region
The South Burnett region is in full swing, from mulching to waiting for the last few bolls to mature. Early crops have been harvested and are going well considering the season. Some crops have tried to put on another set of bolls on top with varying success. While some managed to put these late bolls on early enough to be harvestable, others are simply too late, and will not mature in time.
This year, there have been some issues with boll rot and tight lock due to the frequent showers the region has received. The severity of these issues has depended on the maturity of the crop, the density of the canopy, and the timing of the rain. In addition to showers, the area has experienced multiple significant rainfall events, leading to widespread waterlogging, and preventing growers from accessing their paddocks. This has made it difficult for growers to defoliate or pick their crops. In response, some growers have fitted dual tyres on their pickers to help prevent them from getting bogged. Furthermore, those who had managed to pick and mulch their cotton before receiving too much rain, are now facing issues when trying to root cut, cultivate, or pupae bust.
The trials containing XtendFlex® in the areas have been progressing well, with some currently being picked and others being grown on, waiting for the second crop it has grown. The new varieties look like they will suit our area well and seem to be performing as well as our current varieties. In particular, the faster varieties seem to be doing well. We are looking forward to seeing the picking results after everything is finished.
Fraser Coast
The Fraser Coast region has been experiencing some tough conditions all season, continuing to the end. The area has received constant rain and cloudy weather. Growers have expressed their frustration as they have been receiving rain almost every day, if not every second day, for weeks. This has caused numerous issues for the growers in the area. When the ground is dry enough to access the fields, showers have often impeded defoliation. Unfortunately, defoliation by spray plane is not an option in the area. Like the South Burnett region, growers in the Fraser Coast area have also started to fit dual tyres on their pickers to help prevent them from getting bogged during picking. Additionally, the recent weather has also impacted the cotton lint.
There has been significant boll rot and tight lock across the entire region, drastically impacting yields and fibre quality. Some areas have suffered more than others. Crops are in various stages, from being picked to awaiting their first defoliation. With few opportunities to apply Mepiquat Chloride throughout the season, some crops have grown slightly taller and may need three defoliations this year. Despite the hard season, growers remain optimistic and are keen to get the pickers rolling as soon as they can.
Lockyer/Somerset Valley’s
In the Lockyer Valley, cotton picking has just kicked off, yielding good results for dryland crops, up to 7.5 bales/ha and irrigated around 11-12 bales/ha. The region has received late rain, which has slowed things progress. Late-planted cotton is currently being defoliated, and although affected by boll rot, the plants have compensated with good top bolls and outer position fruit.
In the Somerset region, early planted cotton has all been picked and is awaiting ginning, while late-planted crops have commenced defoliation. We hope to see some good yields. Planting on a single skip configuration to help with the boll rot has helped lower levels of boll rot, with growers learning from the experience last season.
Riverina-Southern NSW
Michael Taylor
As of mid-May, picking is estimated to be 50% complete and currently held up due to wet conditions resulting from widespread rain on the weekend of May 11th. This has been the first serious hold-up for the Murrumbidgee & Murray regions, whilst the Hillston region experienced significant rainfall the previous weekend, bringing the weekly totals for the Hillston region to amounts in excess of 100 mm.
Picking should restart in the Whitton/Murrami areas by Thursday, May 16th. Growers are reporting excellent yields and turnout results, with yields of 12 to 13 bales per hectare being common. Most growers are seeing their best blocks exceeding 14 bales per hectare, with turnouts ranging in the low to mid-40s.
In summary, the 2023-24 season in the Riverina has been in line with the 10-year mean for temperatures, day degrees, and total radiation. The two significant departures from the mean have been an increase of 14 cold shock days, reflected in the difficult start to the season, and the ideal finishing conditions experienced in March, where 1532DD accumulation was 239 vs the 10 year mean of 216.
January to March 1532DD came in at 733 against a predicted 737, reinforcing the relationship between good micronaire results and 1532DD above 700. Yields are running 30% above the long-term average, and quality results suggest bale discounts will be minimal or negligible. There is a possibility of the Southern Valleys producing close to 1 million bales at current yield rates, and the outlook for the cotton industry going into the 2024-25 season is positive.
Below is a summary of current season growing conditions compared to last season and the 10 year mean at Hillston and Griffith (Airport).
Table 1
| Hillston (Cowl Cowl Station) CSD Day Degree Calculator Comparison. | ||
| October 1st to April 30th 2024 (213 days) | 10 Year Mean | October 1st to April 30th 2023
(212 days) |
| 1317.9 (1532DD) | 1374.7 (1532DD) | 1048.1 (1532DD) |
| 22.5 C Av temp | 22.8 C Av temp | 20.8 C Av Temp |
| Griffith CSD Day Degree Calculator Comparison. | ||
| October 1st to April 30th 2024 (213 days) | 10 Year Mean | October 1st to April 30th 2023
(212 days) |
| 1255.2 (1532DD) | 1273.8 (1532DD) | 955.9 (1532DD) |
| 22.0 C Av temp | 22.1 C Av temp | 20.1 C Av Temp |