Economic, Environmental and Energy Use Implications of Short-Season Cotton Production: Texas Lower Rio Grande Valley

Quantities of insecticides used per acre by cotton producers in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas are among the nation's highest. This is due to the presence of many different insect pests and especially to their increasing tolerance to insecticides. As insects become resistant to insecticides, farmers tend to increase the number of insecticide applications, further compounding the problem. Even using large amounts of insecticides, control of damaging insects has been unsatisfactory. Typically, a long-season cotton variety, requiring a 160 to 180 day season, is grown. Because the probability of rainfall is much greater in August than in July [4], most harvesting can be expected in August.