High Cotton

The cotton toward the middle is over six feet tall.  It is amazing!  I can't even walk among the plants anymore.  It would horrify me to knock off one single bowl.  When I woke this morning, there were brand new blooms everywhere!

 Many of the bolls are larger than the biggest walnut I've ever seen.  I go out every day to see if they've opened.  Jason, my ex-husband and son of a former cotton farmer, says the fiber is growing inside the bolls. I'm supposed to be patient.

Few Thoughts

My Uncle Powell and Ms. Sylvia visited the same day as the rest of the family.  He was able to look at the crop and surmise that we most likely have 24D damage.  I probably didn't type that name correctly, but I do remember that's what he called it.  24D is a weed killer that can drift over a distance.  It is likely someone in the neighborhood sprayed their lawn or pasture and it headed our way.  Uncle Powell said the damage was indicated by leaves that appeared rubbery.  I'm grateful he sprayed an organic pesticide before he left.  This seemed to take care of whatever bug left a manure like substance all over several plants.  

It occurred to me later that the pesticide also killed our lovely lady bug population.  We were pretty intent on keeping those.  In fact, I  would rather control other pests with "good" bugs.  Besides lady bugs, we have to find out what those are.   I'm sure we can order insect eggs over the Internet.  They'll hatch in the garden and eat all those dreaded aphids. 

The wind has taken a toll on the plants.  God forbid is this were Oklahoma.  Our heirloom variety of cotton, Nankeen Brown, grows tall and proud.  This does not prove wind hardy.  Next season we will stake each plant with a stalk of bamboo to avoid losing any to the wind.  

Family Visit

That's my family in front of our cotton patch.  From left to right: Charles Bryant (Papaw), Minnie Bryant (Mamaw), Will Bryant (Dad) and Alice Bryant (Mom).  Of course, Lilly worked her way in too.  I was as proud as a peahen that they were there.  It was a treat to see Papaw walk through the plants, lightly squeezing the squares to check for blooms or evaluating those bolls that had already begun to form.  He pointed out some bug infestations and suggested certain pesticides to knock them out.  

I believe we are checking out some insect damage in this photo.  That's dad in the foreground.  Mom and Mamaw stood patiently by, supportive as ever.  Mama has been monitoring our progress via the blog and regular phone conversations. She's pretty convinced of our success, and that's nice to hear.  

Bloom Photos

The blooms appear so delicate when they first open.  I've enjoyed looking out my bedroom window each morning to see spots of color peeking through the green foliage.  

Before closing, this flower was a lovely burgundy  It went from a soft yellow to a deepening red before shriveling up.  Eventually it will fall off the end of the growing boll.