Plains Cotton Growers
An update on the 2023 cotton crop in Georgia, Texas High Plains and South Texas.
Georgia
“We’re probably 60% finished with harvest,” said Taylor Sills, Georgia Cotton Commission executive director. “I’ve had calls about really good cotton, but there are also pockets of really bad cotton, especially in counties that were affected by Hurricane Idalia in September. Those bad pockets have probably suffered a 20% yield loss.”
Georgia producers would like to see a rain come their way, as it’s been four to six weeks since they’ve had moisture. Rain would allow the gins to get caught up and provide ground moisture for the next season.
South Texas
“It’s currently raining here (November 10) and we’re hoping we get enough moisture to run some of these cracks together that are in the soil,” said South Texas Cotton and Grain Executive Director Jeff Nunley. “It’s been dry down here for us.”
Growers have been putting some fertilizer out in preparation for next season, but most are holding back to see if the weather provides them with enough optimism to put money into next year’s crop. Planting season typically begins in February for South Texas, and Nunley says the area needs around three to four inches of rain to make up for the persistent drought that has plagued his region for two years.
“The 2023 crop year was disappointing for us,” he added. “Our cotton acreage was down and so was our yields, which made our gins suffer for the second year in a row. We really need a good cotton crop in 2024 for our infrastructure.” Texas High Plains The killing freeze has occurred across the entire 42-county PCG service region, according to director of Field Services Mark Brown. The first official freeze for Amarillo was October 28th; Lubbock’s was October 29th; and Midland received their freeze on the 30th.
The National Weather Service recorded 0.45 inches of rain for Amarillo, 3.38 inches for Lubbock, and 3.52 inches for Midland in October. The rainfall has slightly delayed harvest and most gins are in a start-and-stop mode.
Brown estimates PCG counties range from 20% to 50% off the stalk. Midland and Big Spring areas are slow with several gins not running for the second year in a row. “They’re very worried about the economic conditions down there,” Brown added.
Assuming weather stays good, Brown estimates that most of the cotton will be out of the field by Thanksgiving, with ginning wrapped up by or before Christmas. Though, he does have some gins say that their projected end date is closer to Thanksgiving.