2016 Cotton Maturity Guide

There are a number of factors to consider when selecting a cotton variety which includes variety performance, traits contained within that variety, and seed treatment package.  However, as a whole, maturity of a given variety is not given a tremendous amount of consideration given our generally long growing season here in Mississippi.  In addition, there seems to have been a movement over the past two decades toward earlier maturing varieties in the Mid-South.  The pro’s and con’s of varietal maturity could be argued considerable depending on your point of view.  Previous research here at Mississippi State University has demonstrated that planting an early maturing variety earlier in the growing season may slightly alleviate plant bug infestation and subsequent control.  In addition, weather in the fall can be unpredictable and we never know when rains will set in for the duration of the winter.  Having said all that, a guide to variety maturity has been developed.  When selecting a variety, performance and other factors should still be given strong consideration; however, if all factors (not counting maturity) that are important to you are equal, selecting an earlier maturing variety may provide some benefit in terms of plant bug management or earlier harvest in the fall.

2016 Cotton Maturity Timeline