Field tested. Proven performance. Trusted to deliver.
The cotton industry is evolving – climate, market demand, management processes and technology advancements necessitate Australian growers and CSD to remain on the front foot, growing a high-quality product that’s sought after, sustainable and profitable.
That’s why we’ve invested in developing new varieties, built for the conditions you face. The Try Before You Buy trials arm you with local variety performance data and insights to help inform your on-farm decision making and plant new seed varieties with confidence.
Trial location: Blackville, NSW
Trial commenced: October 2024
Results:
- Two commercial XtendFlex® varieties Sicot 619B3XF and Siokra 253B3XF were trialled and benchmarked against varieties Sicot 746B3F and Sicot 714B3F.
- Locally, Sicot 714B3F has been a common variety amongst dryland growers.
- Planted on the 8 October 2024, and imbibed nine days later in rain moisture, the crop featured consistent in-crop rainfall throughout the season.
- Although, a mid-season hailstorm did impact the field, no notable yield penalties were observed.
- Early vigour demonstrated by Sicot 619B3XF was seen as a huge benefit to the grower in this dryland situation.
- Final yields were close, although Sicot 619B3XF did demonstrate the highest with 9.91b/ha [see Figure 1].
- Quality was uniform across all varieties although Sicot 619B3XF did demonstrate high micronaire (5.1). This is likely due to early maturity in comparison to the other varieties, but it did maintain a higher length and strength.
- In the Upper Namoi Valley, as in other southern cotton growing regions, an early-maturing variety offers a significant advantage.
Figure 1: Average yields off the four varieties being compared in a dryland trial near Blackville, NSW in the 2024/25 season.
Grower feedback:
“Sicot 619B3XF really bolted out of the ground. Sicot 619B3XF will be a choice for our farm given I’ve grown Sicot 714B3F for such a long time.”
Our thanks to the grower, Rob Davies, who participated in the Try Before You Buy trials.
If you are interested in becoming a trial co-operator or would like to know more about the trial conducted at Blackville, contact Natalie Aquilina on 0459 434 293.
