Central Queensland (CQ) cotton growers and consultants are embracing an initiative aimed at identifying avenues for improving management practices, enhancing yield, fibre quality, and resource-use efficiencies. This initiative was born out of the growers’ expressed need for more research to understand the opportunities, challenges, and risk mitigation strategies associated with the long season cotton system.
One of the significant changes in CQ was the shift in planting times to as early as August. This change resulted in crops maturing early in the following season, around January/February. This shift provides the grower and consultant with a choice: to harvest the crop or let it ‘grow-on’.
The ‘grown-on’ system, which allows for potential high yields of over 18 bales/ha, when harvested in May/June, depending on climate and water availability. This system has attracted the interest of growers and is likely to continue given the unpredictable monsoon conditions that impact their crops and yield potentials.
Growers and consultants are however aware of the risks associated with these systems. To address this, CSD is supporting growers and consultants through the Richard Williams Initiative to provide more information on the resource use efficiency of these systems with more detailed monitoring of crop growth, water, and nutrient use. This will help inform current practices or identify the need for further research.
This season the project has 10 fields that are spread across Central Queensland (CQ), extending from the Dawson region to the Central Highlands. The monitoring process commences with the establishment of the crops and continues until the picking stage. Data is collected from these fields every two weeks, capturing various stages of the crop’s life cycle. These stages include establishment counts, squaring, first flower, first phase cutout, length of the lag phase, second phase cutout, and ultimately defoliation.
A range of measurements are recorded during the crop’s life cycle, including height, nodes, NAWF, NACB, retention, and boll counts. This systematic and regular data collection helps understand the growth patterns and health of the crops across different regions and conditions. The data provides valuable insights into the crop’s progression during the ‘grown-on’ phase across different fields, potentially aiding in the optimization of crop management strategies.
In these fields, moisture probes are also utilized to gather data, offering a comprehensive view of the crop’s behaviour during stress periods and various stages of its life. Leaf and petiole samples have been collected this season throughout the crop’s life to help understand the nutritional status of the crop during the first and second crop cycles. This information is crucial in understanding the crop’s nutritional needs and managing them effectively for optimal growth.
Once the crop is in its second growth phase, samples of open white cotton are taken and hand ginned. This process helps in understanding if the quality of cotton can differ in each phase.
Towards the end of the season, close to the first defoliation it is hoped that field walks will be conducted to present the information collected. During these field walks, growers and consultants also have the opportunity to discuss and share how this season has gone and if they have learned anything different throughout this season compared to ones in the past on how these crops are managed.
As this is the second year of the project, we are observing some similarities within the system but also some clear variations in how crops respond to management from field to field and season to season, indicating that it is a very adaptable system.
The project led by the Central Queensland cotton growers and consultants shows their commitment to ongoing improvement and adaptability in changing conditions. Their work is not only increasing their own yields and efficiencies, but also adding to the broader understanding of cotton growth and farming under highly variable conditions. This project is a clear example of collaboration and the pursuit of knowledge in challenging circumstances. It tells a story of resilience, innovation, and continuous improvement. It’s a story that’s worth sharing and one that will likely continue to develop in the future.