I have always had a passion for denim. I can still remember my first pair of Toughskins — they were green with those reinforced knees. I wanted to wear them a lot more often than the hand-me-downs I would get from my sister. Through the junior high and high school years, jeans played a big part in every day life…. Read More
How has cotton been genetically modified?
Recently I saw one of those questions pop up on Quora that made me stop in my tracks as I thought about the various things I had learned from cotton breeders and other experts over the years. The question “How has cotton been genetically modified?” already had two short answers but I knew I would go on at length. Part of… Read More
Cotton 101: What is cotton variety improvement?
When you look at cotton overall, the crop can be improved in a variety of ways. For some, adding irrigation to their crop production would be an improvement while others may find that being able to move from hand labor to mechanical labor is an improvement. Another way to improve cotton production is to look for new cotton varieties —… Read More
Which states produce the most cotton? Acres, Pounds & More
(Editor’s note: This post will be updated annually in mid January with the most recent year’s production numbers.) When you are really close to something, you sometimes forget that other people will find things you know somewhat automatically of interest. That’s the case with a couple of posts I’ve written over the past couple of years talking about the leading… Read More
Two City Girls on the Farm for a Day
In October, I spent several days in Memphis. On one trip, you may remember I got stuck in the mud on a turnrow in a cotton field and I became one of the problems cotton farmers can have when it rains at harvest time! A couple of weeks later, I returned to Memphis and with really nice weather, I decided… Read More
What cotton harvest problems can farmers have when it rains?
This weekend, I accidentally called a friend who farms (ok, I butt dialed him) and he called me back. We enjoyed the serendipity of it all and had a good visit. As is always the case, weather was a major discussion point. Seems not only was Memphis cooler and wetter than I’d like but he could definitely identify. As would be… Read More