Deltapine Class of ‘16 cotton varieties were announced Dec. 12 to more than 140 farmers at the 2015 New Product Evaluator Summit in San Antonio, Texas.

NPE farmers participate in the evaluator program to be the first to grow and test in large-acre plots new cotton varieties under their management systems and at their geographic location. Their evaluation and feedback help the company select lines for commercial advancement.

The Deltapine Class of 16 cotton varieties

DP 1646 B2XF is a new variety similar to DP 1050 B2RF. It is broadly adapted to the full-season markets of the Southeast, Mid-South and Texas. In 2015 testing, DP 1646 B2XF showed yield potential equal to or greater than all top check varieties.

“It was by far the best cotton in our NPE trial, averaging 1,518 pounds per acre,” said Rodney Dawson in Hawkinsville, Ga. “It’s one of the showier cottons and it looked good. I had a guy flying over the field and he said all season long that this variety was going to win the trials. It had an average loan of 51.47 cents. Micronaire was 4.6. The staple was 38. The strength was 29.40. Uniformity was 80.5. The grades and yield really stood out.”

DP 1639 B2XF is a new mid-maturity variety. It demonstrated improved fiber quality performance over DP 1538 B2XF. When planted on high-production soil types with good irrigation, DP 1639 B2XF may require aggressive PGR management. It has demonstrated stable yield performance.

“I like the way it came up and the way it grew off,” said Jack Huerkamp in Macon, Miss. “But what I really liked about it was its yield. It averaged 1,721 pounds per acre. It was no less than 250 pounds better than the closest check in the NPE trial, and that included DP 1321 B2RF. It also graded well. I like this variety.”

Across 77 testing locations, DP 1614 B2XF yielded on par with DP 1522 B2XF, but delivered much better staple and length. It has a maturity similar to DP 0912 B2RF and adapts well to a wide range of soil types. DP 1614 B2XF averaged 1,358 pounds per acre, beating DP 1518 B2XF by an average of 150 pounds per acre in the NPE plots managed by Pace Hindsley in Marvell, Ark.

DP 1612 B2XF best fit appears to be the High Plains of Texas, especially north of Lubbock. It also showed good performance in the Mid-South. This variety has a large seed size and excellent seedling vigor. It responds well to PGR management.