If the 2013 cotton-growing season could be described in terms of bedtime stories, Goldilocks and the Three Bears comes to mind. Some regions of the Cotton Belt were much too rainy, and others were much too dry. But in a few regions, everything was just right, with nearly perfect combinations of sunshine and precipitation.

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In recent years, cotton varieties are being judged not only by their ability to break records when weather is ideal, but to hang in there under extremely stressful environmental conditions. For 2014, seed companies are offering new cultivars that suit a range of grower tastes, including new insect control technology, root-knot nematode resistance, wide adaptability, improved fiber quality and higher yield potential. Descriptions are provided by the seed companies.

Americot (Americot and NexGen brands)

Americot, Inc., is announcing a new NexGen variety for the High Plains and Rolling Plains.

NG 3306 B2RF is a Bollgard II/Roundup Ready Flex variety with early- to mid-maturity and about a week earlier than NG 1511 B2RF.

“NG 3306 B2RF is well-adapted to the High and Rolling Plains,” said Americot director of technical services, Ken Legé. “The semi-smooth leaf variety has very good tolerance to Verticillium wilt, very good storm tolerance and excellent seedling vigor.”

NG 3306 B2RF, tested earlier as NGX3306B2RF, yields higher than NG 1511 B2RF in the northern High Plains and yields equally to NG 1511 B2RF in the southern High Plains. “NG 3306 B2RF was the highest yielder of seven popular varieties in the High and Rolling Plains,” Legé says. “It averaged 1,688 pounds per acre and a 56.34 cent loan. That’s according to all university and internal trials in the Americot technical service database.”

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In addition to excellent yield potential, NG 3306 B2RF has an outstanding fiber package, according to Legé.  It features a staple range of 36 – 37, strength 28 – 30, micronaire 4.0 - 4.7, and a 32 – 36 percent turnout. NG 3306 B2RF will be available in an introductory supply in 2014.

For more information on NexGen brand and Americot brand cotton products, go to www.americot.com.

Bayer CropScience (FiberMax and Stoneville brands)

Bayer CropScience announces seven new FiberMax and Stoneville cotton varieties for the 2014 season. Four new varieties from FiberMax and Stoneville contain new TwinLink technology with two Bt genes for season-long protection against lepidopteran pests. All seven of the new FiberMax and Stoneville varieties incorporate stacked GlyTol LibertyLink technology for a wide window of over-the-top applications of Liberty herbicide and glyphosate.

“Cotton growers want high-yielding, high-quality varieties with traits that give them flexibility to control the yield-robbing pests in their field, whether those are hard-to-control weeds or worms,” said Jeff Brehmer, U.S. product manager for FiberMax and Stoneville cotton. “Our newest FiberMax and Stoneville varieties provide just that: the best germplasm with the latest proprietary traits from Bayer CropScience.”

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New Bayer/FiberMax varieties available in 2014 include:

FM 1830GLT and FM 2334GLT offer the GlyTol, LibertyLink and TwinLink trait package for full tolerance to both Liberty herbicide and glyphosate and two proprietary Bt genes for effective management of major lepidopteran pests. Both varieties offer excellent yield potential and fiber quality with the added benefit of Verticillium wilt tolerance. Both are adapted for the High Plains. FM 1830GLT is an early-medium maturing variety. FM 2334GLT, a medium maturing variety, has very similar characteristics to FM 2484B2F, with better fiber quality.

FM 1320GL and FM 2322GL have the GlyTol and LibertyLink traits for adaptation in the Texas High Plains. FM 1320GL is the earliest maturing variety offered by FiberMax. It has excellent yield potential and good fiber quality. FM 2322GL is a medium-maturing variety with excellent yield potential and outstanding fiber quality.

New Bayer/Stoneville varieties available in 2014 include:

ST 5032GLT and ST 5289GLT offer the GlyTol, LibertyLink and TwinLink traits. ST 5032GLT has an early-medium maturity with strong yield potential and excellent fiber quality. This variety complements ST 4946GLB2 and FM 1944GLB2 in the cotton-growing regions east of the Mississippi River. ST 5289GLT is a medium-maturing variety similar to ST 5288B2F, the No. 1 variety planted in the south Delta last season. ST 5289GLT has excellent yield potential, especially on marginal soil types and good fiber quality.

ST 4747GLB2 has the GlyTol, LibertyLink ,Bollgard II trait package. ST 4747GLB2 has a broad adaptation with one of the earliest maturities in the Stoneville portfolio. With two years in the Cotton Agronomic Performance trials, ST 4747GLB2 set new yield standards in the Mid-South and Southeast for an early-season variety, with improved fiber length and micronaire in the Stoneville brand.

For more information on how these and other FiberMax and Stoneville cotton seed varieties can work on the farm, visit www.FiberMax.com and www.Stoneville.com.

Croplan by WinField

According to Robert Cossar, regional agronomist and product manager for Croplan by WinField, these two varieties are available in 2014.

CG 3428B2RF is an early-mid variety with a staple length of 36 – 38, strength, 29 – 31, micronaire, 4.4 – 4.7 and uniformity, 84.1. The variety fits throughout the Cotton Belt as an early-maturing variety.

CG 3787B2RF is a medium-maturity, with a staple length of 36 – 38, strength, 29 – 31, micronaire, 4.4 – 4.7 and uniformity of 84.1. It has been consistent in the southern Cotton Belt from Texas to Georgia. It is susceptible to bacterial blight.

For more information, see www.winfield.com.

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Crop Production Services (Dyna-Gro and All-Tex brands)

CPS/Dyna-Gro is offering one new variety for 2014:

DG 2355 B2RF is a new Bollgard II/Roundup Ready Flex upland variety shown to have excellent seedling vigor. It has a medium-tall plant height, early-medium maturity and has broad adaptability with very good yield potential and fiber quality characteristics throughout most of the U.S. cotton growing areas. This semi-smooth leaf variety particularly offers advantages in fiber length and strength for its maturity group. The open boll storm tolerance of DG 2355 B2RF has been rated very good. Plant architecture is semi-columnar with semi-compact boll positions.  This variety has shown very good tolerance to southern root knot nematode with some limited tolerance to reniform nematode.

For more information, visit www.dynagroseed.com.

CPS/All-Tex Seed is now offering these varieties in expanded markets:

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Edge B2RF is an early-medium, semi-smooth variety that is excellent for short season or late planting. It is a good dryland or irrigated option and is adapted to Texas and the East Coast. Very good storm tolerance for delayed harvest.

Epic RF is a medium-maturing, smooth leaf type with outstanding yield potential that performs very well, dryland or irrigated. It is broadly adaptable for use on most soils.

Nitro-44 B2RF is a medium, semi-smooth leaf variety with premium fiber quality and performs very well, dryland or irrigated. It is adapted to Tennessee, and the East and Gulf Coastal growing areas for use on most soils.

For more information, visit www.alltexseed.com.

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Dow AgroSciences (PhytoGen brand)

Dow AgroSciences will also be unveiling its new WideStrike 3 insect protection trait in a limited quantity for 2014. WideStrike 3 features the Cry 1Ac and Cry F proteins and a vegetative insecticidal protein (Vip3A) from Bacillus thuringiensis for control of a wide range of lepidopteran pests, such as cotton bollworm and improved resistance management.

PhytoGen plans to introduce six new varieties for 2014 to help build on its 20 percent market share.

PHY 222 WRF is the earliest of the new PhytoGen varieties. It is a very broadly adaptable variety. It has a medium-tall plant height, exceptional yield potential and is a hairy leaf variety. It is a west Texas, northern High Plains variety that is early-maturing, determinate and has excellent storm tolerance. It can be stripper or picker harvested.

PHY 333 WRF is a very high-yielding variety. Its turnout is higher, micronaire lower and length, strength and uniformity very similar to PHY 499 WRF. It will start fruiting a little lower than PHY 375 WRF.

PHY 417 WRF and PHY 427 WRF are root knot-nematode resistant varieties and are similar in characteristics. PHY 417 WRF is more stormproof and possibly earlier. “They’re both very early-maturing, and have excellent yield potential in root-knot nematode environments,” said Joel Faircloth, cotton development specialist for Dow AgroSciences. “These are varieties that we don’t expect to win straight yield trials. We expect them to win when you put them in a root-knot nematode environment. The varieties showed a 90-plus percent reduction in root knot nematode populations, when samples are taken at the end of the season.”

PHY 495 W3RF is the introduction of the first 3-gene, Bt cotton to the market. Called WideStrike 3, it is very similar in growth to PHY 499 WRF, which is in its background. It offers exceptional lepidopteran protection.

PHY 599 is a full-season variety, with medium- to tall plant height. It’s a smooth leaf with superior yield potential in full-season environments, such as lower South Carolina through Georgia and Florida to the Coastal Bend of Texas.

For more information, visit www.dowagro.com/phytogen.

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Monsanto (Deltapine brand)

More than 200 cotton farmers helped to select three new high-yielding Deltapine products for 2014. Growers across the Cotton Belt participated in the Deltapine New Product Evaluator program and voted on which varieties they saw fit for advancement.

DP 1454NR B2RF is a full-season variety for the west Texas and Georgia markets. This product has been bred for resistance to root knot nematode and showed excellent yield potential across a range of root-knot nematode pressure.

DP 1410 B2RF is an early-season variety for the west Texas and Texas northern High Plains regions. It has very good to excellent storm resistance, outstanding yield potential, an excellent fiber package and an excellent rating against bacterial blight and Verticillium.

DP 1441 RF is a mid- to full-season variety for the west Texas market. This variety is easy to manage, according to farmers who grew it in 2013, and fits well in dryland and areas of limited water.

Visit the New Product Evaluator page on deltapine.com to learn more about how these varieties were grown, evaluated and brought to market.

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Seed Source Genetics

Seed Source Genetics will offer one new conventional cotton variety for 2014. The variety was developed by Arkansas cotton breeder Fred Bourland.

UA 103 is a conventional, okra-leaf with a long staple, 1.18 to 1.22. Micronaire is around 4.5 and strength is 30-31.5. The variety is highly resistant to bacterial blight, moderately tolerant to Verticillium wilt and root-knot nematode. It is resistant to Fusarium wilt and moderately resistant to tarnished plant bug. It showed good lint yields at a trial at Judd Hill in west Tennessee with high Verticillium wilt pressure.

For more information, visit www.seedsourcegenetics.com.

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