Cotton plants have indeterminate growth habits and, under certain temperature conditions, they continue to grow and elongate. Therefore, timely topping is necessary to remove apical dominance, diverting nutrients to the fruiting branches and promoting reproductive growth. So, how should cotton plants be topped? And what are the considerations after topping? Let's find out:
How to Top Cotton Plants?
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Manual Topping: Common method involves manually pinching off the top shoot with one leaf and one bud. This is typically done from late July to early August, with early topping for weak growth and delayed topping for vigorous growth.
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Mechanical Topping: Introducing intelligent mechanical equipment into the cotton production process, using image recognition technology to intelligently identify the top shoot and precisely remove it, eliminating apical dominance.
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Chemical Topping: Chemical topping agents mainly contain mepiquat chloride. The specific concentration is 250g/L mepiquat chloride solution. The usual application method is spraying 50ml per mu diluted with 25-30kg of water on cotton plants at the squaring stage.
Considerations After Topping
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Chemical Control: After topping, apply chemical control 1-2 times. The first application can be done 3-5 days after topping, applying 4-5g of mepiquat chloride per mu with 30kg of water per mu. The second application generally applies around 8g of mepiquat chloride per mu.
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Timely Irrigation: After topping, irrigation should be done promptly. When watering, use small amounts of water to avoid excessive watering. Follow the principle of "first water should be less, second water should be sufficient, third and fourth water should be adequate" after topping.
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Proper Fertilization: Implement root fertilization and foliar spraying after topping. Apply nitrogen and potassium fertilizers primarily, and supplement phosphorus fertilizer for phosphorus-deficient soils. Additionally, consider foliar fertilization, adding an appropriate amount of cotton strong stem capsules to every 15kg of liquid.
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Pest and Disease Management: Pay attention to pest and disease control after topping, including aphids, cotton red spider mites, and cotton wilt disease. Use insecticides like imidacloprid and abamectin to control aphids and red spider mites, and timely spray fungicides for cotton wilt disease to reduce damage.
In summary, topping is an important part of cotton planting management to improve cotton yield. Proper topping techniques and timely post-topping management considerations are crucial for successful cotton cultivation.
