how to grow cotton from a seed

8/8/2019 How to Grow Cotton From a Seed

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By MD White, eHow Contributorupdated: May 6, 2010

Difficulty: ModerateInstructions

How to Grow Cotton From a Seed

Clear the ground where you will be planting the cotton, making sure it is free of any debris before fertilizing

the soil with manure or compost. Once you are done, rake the soil so that it is level.

1.

Dig into the ground 6 to 8 inches in preparation for planting the seeds. Your rows should be 1 to 1.5 feet

wide and be somewhere around 2 feet apart. Make a little furrow about 1 inch deep in the middle of each of

the rows. To help you make straight rows, you can fasten a piece of string that is as long as your row to a

couple of sticks to mark the line for you.

2.

Place a couple of cotton seeds about 4 inches apart in the furrow you have dug. Then cover them with the

soil you previously dug up.

3.

Wait a few weeks until the seeds sprout before watering your cotton seedlings. Then you will need to water

them every week. You will also have to fertilize your cotton plants every couple of weeks with a fertilizer that

has lots of potassium and nitrogen.

4.

Stop watering your cotton plants when they bloom (after about 16 weeks) so that you give the plants a

chance to dry and lose their leaves. In general, you can start picking your cotton when the bolls open and the

fibers are dry and fluffy, a process that can take anywhere from four to seven months.

5.

Cotton thrives in places that have a hot and humid climate with good amounts of rainfall. However, it also requires a great deal of sun. Cotton can

be grown in a greenhouse as long the soil is fertile, and the temperature is warm.

In general, you will need between an acre and an acre-and-a-half for each bale of cotton you want to produce.

You can grow cotton in large pots, but you should limit the seed to three per container. As they germinate, eliminate all but the hardiest seedling,

leaving it to grow by itself in the pot.

You can eat the petals of cotton flowers; they taste sort of like okra.

Growing cotton takes a great deal of land, water, and pesticides.

Cotton plants tend to blow over quite easily, so you may need to provide them with some sort of support.

Cotton plants are susceptible to red spider mites. You can treat these pests by frequently misting the plants with water or spraying them with

insecticidal soap.

MRC Seeds: Cotton Production

Go Self Sufficient: Gr ow Your Own Cotton

Home Home & Garden Plants, Flowers & Herbs Growing Cotton How to Grow Cotton From a See d

Things You'll Need:

Cotton seeds

Fertilized soil

Water

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Tips & Warnings

References

How to Grow Cotton From a Seed | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/print/how_6108944_grow-

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Plant Cultures: Cotton--Grow it

Cotton.org: The Story of Cotton

Georgia Cotton Commission: Growing Cotton

Jamie L. Whitten Plant Materials Center: How To Grow No-till Cotton

cotton field in contrast with blue sky image by lulu from Fotolia.com

How Does Cotton Become Cloth?

Growing Bird Seed on Cotton

How to Grow Bean Seed in Cotton & Water

How to Chop Cotton

How to Process and Store Cotton

Resources

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