Are you currently involved in cultivating Bt Cotton or considering it as viable option for your crops?
Bt Cotton undoubtedly offers the advantage of added protection against pests, but it’s important to remember that even with this valuable trait, it still relies on suitable growing conditions and careful nutrient management for optimal growth and yield. Get a complete insight into these requirements to propel your Bt Cotton farming.
Growing conditions required for Bt cotton
Climate
To ensure proper germination in field conditions, a minimum temperature of 15°C is required. For vegetative growth, the optimum temperature range is 21-27°C. While cotton plants can tolerate temperatures up to 43°C, temperature below 21°C is detrimental to the crops.
Warm days and cool nights during fruiting stage promotes good boll development and high-quality fiber. However, excessive rainfall or heavy irrigation during this stage can lead to the shedding of flowers and young bolls. Cotton plants are susceptible to frost.
Soil Requirement
Cotton crops grow in well-drained deep alluvial soils (northern zone), black clayey soils (central and south zone), and mixed black and red soils (southern zone). These soil types provide favorable conditions for the growth of cotton plants. Cotton has a certain level of tolerance to saline soils and is highly sensitive to waterlogged conditions.
Growing Season
- Early planting: April – May (Northern India)
- Delayed planting: Monsoon based (Southern India)
Cotton is generally a kharif season crop. Time of planting of cotton with respect to different states are given below;
| State | Irrigated Crop | Rainfed Crop |
| Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, parts of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh | March-May | June-July |
| Tamil Nadu* | September-October | September-November |
| Tamil Nadu (Summer Sowing) | February-March | N/A |
| Parts of Andhra Pradesh* and Karnataka (Desi cotton) | August – September | |
(* The sowings of cotton in the Rice fallows of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu span from the latter half of December to the middle of January)
Land Preparation
Prepare the field to get a fine tilth. Chisel the soil with chisel plough, once in three years to break up the hard pan formation found at shallow depths in the soil. Apply the recommended dosage (in the table) of FYM or compost uniformly on the unploughed soil.
Nutrient Management of Bt Cotton
Bt cotton crops grow well at 49:24:24 kg/acre NPK recommended dose. Spray Micronutrients as recommended if you find deficiency in the crops.
| Nutrient | Fertilizer | Dosage |
| Basal Application | ||
| Organic | FYM/Compost or | 5 t/acre |
| Vermicompost | 1 t/acre | |
| Tapas Humic Acid with Special Minerals | Soil application: 5 ml/lit of water | |
| Biofertilizers | Azotobacter or | 500 ml – 1 lit of product + 40 – 50 kg of FYM/vermicompost |
| Azospirillum + Phosphobacteria | 1 lit of the product (each) + 50 – 100 kg of manure or cake | |
| N | Urea | 14 kg/acre |
| P | Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) | 52 kg/acre |
| K | Muriate of Potash (MOP) | 20 kg/acre |
| First Split Application (40 – 45 DAS) | ||
| N | Urea | 35 kg/acre |
| K | Muriate of Potash (MOP) | 20 kg/acre |
| Zn | Swarna Zinc EDTA 12% | Foliar: 0.5 – 1 gm/lit of water |
| Mg | Multiplex Moti Mg | Foliar: 0.5 gm/lit of water |
| Multi Micronutrient | Amruth Cotton Grow | Foliar: 2 – 3 ml/lit of water |
| Second Split Application (65 – 70 DAS) | ||
| N | Urea or | 35 kg/acre |
| Ammonium Sulphate | 76 kg/acre | |
| Zn | Shamrock Zinc Micronutrient | Foliar: 0.5 gm/lit of water |
| Mg | Multiplex Moti Mg | Foliar: 0.5 gm/lit of water |
| B | Allbor Boron 20% | Foliar: 1 gm/lit of water |
| Third Split Application (80 – 90 DAS) | ||
| Potassium Nitrate (KNO3) – For higher yield and better quality | Geolife Nano Fert 13:00:45 | Foliar:1 – 2 gm/lit of water |
| B | Allbor Boron 20% | Foliar: 1 gm/lit of water |
*DAS – Days after Sowing
(Foliar spray of 2% MgSO4 + 1% Urea can be given during boll formation stage, if needed to improve cotton fibre quality)
