What are the ways cotton spreads its seeds?

Cotton is one of the important cash crops in our country and has a long history. The cotton currently grown is used in the imitation textile industry, beauty products, and so on. So what are the ways cotton spreads its seeds?

1. What are the ways cotton spreads its seeds?

Cotton relies on wind to spread its seeds. Generally, in the middle and late stages of cotton growth, the cotton spreads by hanging down on threads or by climbing and shifting with the wind, dispersing in all directions and drifting to the ground. When the climate conditions are suitable, it will grow.

2. How is cotton planted?

1. Seed selection and land preparation

There are now many varieties of cotton, such as white cotton, colored cotton, yellow cotton, gray cotton, and so on. Different regions are suitable for planting different cotton varieties, so we need to choose locally high-yield and high-quality varieties for planting according to the local planting environment. Next is the selection and preparation of the planting site. Cotton has relatively large water and fertilizer needs, so the soil at the planting site should be fertile, well-drained, loose in texture, and moderate in pH. The land should be deeply plowed, impurities in the soil should be cleaned out, and after applying sufficient base fertilizer, the land should be turned over again. Before planting, the soil should be watered once to keep it moist, which is beneficial to the growth of the cotton root system.

2. Scientific planting

Cotton is generally planted by transplanting seedlings, which means we need to go through a period of seedling raising, and when the seedlings have grown to a certain extent, they are transplanted into the field. When sowing, it is best to sow early, as this can avoid many pests and diseases. When sowing, we all use the drill sowing method, with the distance between each row at about 20 cm. The seeds are evenly scattered into the furrow, and finally covered with soil to hide the seeds, watered once, and it is best to cover them with a layer of straw or plastic film, which can play a role in keeping warm and moist, and is also beneficial to the emergence of cotton seedlings. But note that after the seeds emerge, the covering should be removed in time to avoid seedling burn.

3. Field management

In the early stage of cotton planting, we need to ensure a full stand of seedlings and prevent seedling-stage pests and diseases. In addition, after each watering, rainfall, or field work, we should carry out intertillage and weeding to maintain soil permeability. In the middle stage of cotton growth, that is, the cotton bud stage, we need to carry out management work such as topdressing, watering, intertillage, and hilling. Topdressing is mainly to promote the growth of cotton plants and the uniformity of bud growth. It is necessary not only to apply fertilizer outside the roots but also to combine it with foliar fertilizer. Finally, there is the middle and late stage management of cotton growth, which we also call the boll-opening stage. This period can be said to be the key period for high yield and high quality of cotton. We need to do a good job in pruning and removing branches, chemical regulation, intertillage and weeding, as well as foliar topdressing and watering and drainage.

4. Pest and disease control

During the whole growth process of cotton, its pests and diseases are actually relatively frequent. For example, during the seedling stage, the most common pests and diseases include damping-off, anthracnose, cotton aphids, cutworms, and so on. We can use agents such as ethylicin, hymexazol, pirimicarb, and phoxim respectively for control. In the later stage, the most important thing is to prevent the harm of insect pests to cotton, mainly including mirids, aphids, cotton bollworms, and so on. We can use fipronil, high-concentration imidacloprid, and emamectin benzoate plus beta-cypermethrin to spray before 9 a.m. or after 5 p.m.