Cotton – The White Gold: Maximizing Yield with Modern Farming Practices
Date: 28-5-2025Gold prices are increasing day by day and have reached historic highs—and they continue to rise. But unlike yellow gold, the price of white gold—cotton—has remained limited and stagnant. While the market value of cotton has not kept pace, the cost of cultivation continues to rise year after year. This growing gap directly affects farmer profitability.
To survive and succeed, cotton farmers must focus on reducing input costs by adopting smart, efficient, and sustainable farming practices. Avoiding unnecessary or outdated practices, and embracing precision agriculture, is the key to protecting margins and ensuring long-term viability in cotton farming.
1. Drip Irrigation with Precise Fertigation: Feeding Roots, Not Weeds
Traditional flood irrigation not only wastes water but also leads to uneven nutrient distribution. Drip irrigation, especially with 2 LPH (liters per hour) discharge emitters placed at 40 cm intervals, ensures efficient delivery of water and nutrients directly to the plant root zone. This precise setup supports uniform plant growth, reduces water wastage, and minimizes weed development between rows.
When combined with fertigation—the practice of applying fertilizers through the drip system—this method provides cotton plants with nutrients in the right quantity and at the right stage. The result is stronger root systems, healthier plants, and a significant increase in yield per acre.
2. Mulching: The Smart Tool for Weed and Moisture Control
Weeds are silent yield thieves, competing with cotton for nutrients, water, and sunlight. Mulching, particularly using organic or plastic mulches, acts as a protective barrier on the soil. It suppresses weed growth, conserves soil moisture, and maintains soil temperature—all of which create ideal conditions for cotton growth. Mulching also reduces the frequency of manual weeding, saving labor and cost.
3. Timely Pest Control: Precision Matters
Pest pressure in cotton, especially from bollworms and sucking pests, can devastate crops if not managed proactively. Timely pest control using the correct spraying methods is crucial. One often overlooked but vital detail is spraying beneath the leaf surface—the preferred hiding spot for many pests. Ensuring that spray droplets reach the underside of leaves increases the effectiveness of pest control operations and reduces pesticide wastage.
4. Integrated Approach for Maximum Returns
Combining drip irrigation (2 LPH, 40 cm spacing), fertigation, mulching, and precise pest control forms a powerful integrated crop management strategy. This not only boosts yields but also ensures healthier crops with improved fiber quality, leading to better market prices.
Conclusion: Farming Cotton the Smart Way — A Collective Responsibility
Behind every thriving cotton field stands a united force of stakeholders: progressive farmers, innovative seed companies, precision irrigation providers, timely input suppliers, and the crucial support of government schemes and policies. Agricultural universities and research centers, with their cutting-edge knowledge, form the scientific backbone that drives yield enhancement and sustainability.
Yet, the journey doesn’t end here.
To truly empower cotton farmers, we must go beyond business as usual. We must unite to maximize yield with minimal input, through smart water use, drip irrigation, precision fertigation, climate-resilient seeds, and integrated pest management. Every timely delivery, every on-ground support visit, every well-implemented policy matters.
Cotton—our White Gold—thrives when every stakeholder becomes a committed partner in progress.
Let’s strengthen this ecosystem. Let’s work smarter, together. Let’s make every drop of water, every gram of nutrient, and every innovation count—so our farmers grow more with less, and the legacy of cotton continues to flourish in both yield and value.
Vijaykumar M. Sarur
Chief-Agronomist
Kothari Agritech Pvt Ltd