Welcome to the latest CSD regional newsletter. By the time this newsletter goes out we will be through the Christmas/New Years holiday season. Hopefully everyone found time to take a break and enjoy some time with friends and family. The new two-day ashes cricket test match format is certainly helping reduce lost time, so I thought I’d use this opportunity to share a short update and a few considerations as we move into the upcoming 2026 cotton season.
Planting is well underway in the Northern Territory with the first seed going in the ground on 10 December. Planting was slow to begin with due to wet conditions in parts of the Douglas Daly region and extremely dry conditions in the southern end of the Douglas Daly region and Katherine. As conditions improved moving into the second half of December, planting operations were in full swing and with follow up rain events, early reports suggest that those crops in the ground are off to a great start.
One of the first CSD trials to be planted this season is a row configuration/planting density trial supported by the team at Black Bull Station. To assist with planting this trial CSD’s newly acquired 4 row John Deere ExactEmerge™ planter with ExactShot™ technology, which is the first of its kind in Australia, was transported from Dalby in Southern Queensland to the Northern Territory. The photo below shows the new planter in action completing the 60-inch (1.5 meter) row spacing part of the trial.
Across the border and in the Ord Valley of Western Australia, planting is set to commence on 1 January. Generally, across the valley fields are looking fantastic with well-prepared beds and robust herbicide programs setting up a great foundation for the upcoming season.
With our focus at this time of year being predominantly on planting, I thought I would share a few points to help get things off to the best possible start.
Soil temperature
Generally speaking, in the “traditional cotton growing regions” one of the key factors to good establishment is soil temperature at planting. In these regions the key to this is a soil temperature of 14 degrees or above at 10cm measured at 8am with a forecast showing rising temperatures for the next 7 days. As part of the CSD/Sygenta fast start program, CSD maintains a network of weather stations across the cotton valleys that are available for members to access.
A quick browse across the Northern Australia weather stations shows soil temperatures consistently above 30 degrees, so evidently cool soil temperatures will not be an issue. However, high soil temperatures have the potential to be an issue, particularly in drier sandy soils. A recent observation from the NT had a soil temperature at 55 degrees. In these conditions follow up rain or irrigation in the preceding days after planting is going to be essential for good establishment.
By this stage variety and seed treatment decisions will have been made, to facilitate timely delivery of seed into local regions. When planting, it’s important to consider the difference between low density varieties, such as Sicot 606B3F and 761B3XF and Siokra 253B3XF, to that of normal density varieties such as Sicot 714B3F and 619B3XF. Low density seed is characterised by an embryo that does not completely fill the seed coat, unlike normal density seed where the embryo fully occupies the space. The lower density seed will contain lower seed weight, reduced oil content and less stored energy available to the developing seedling. The result of this is lower seedling vigour which can make the low-density variety more vulnerable in marginal planting conditions. However, low density varieties will often have a greater gin turnout percentage resulting in a higher lint yield. Check out the summary table of variety characteristics for further information.
Every bag of seed contains a AUSlot number that can be utilised to access the “statement of seed analysis”, found on the CSD website at https://tools.csd.net.au/auslots. Alternatively, scan the QR code on the bag of seed to directly access the statement of seed analysis.
The key information contained in the statement of seed analysis is specific quality data for an AUSlot, including results for germination, seeds per kilogram, mechanical damage, and physical purity. The germination results represent the physiological quality of the seed lot. The standard ‘warm’ germination test measures the germination potential or seed viability and represents the maximum germination rate under ideal conditions. This is a seven-day test which is conducted under a cyclic 20/30°C temperature regime. To be considered germinated, a seedling must have a length of at least 40 mm and be free from abnormalities. The cool germination test measures seed vigour, which represents the seeds’ potential for rapid and uniform germination and development of normal seedlings under a range of conditions. This test follows the same parameters but is conducted at a constant 18°C for seven days. CSD includes both warm and cool germination data on all AUSlot’s to provide growers and agronomists with useful and relevant data to make informed decisions at planting time. Data is also provided on physical purity, as well as mechanical damage, which is assessed as a percentage of seeds with physical defects such as cracked or holed seed coat, or broken seed. All germination values reported are for the whole sample including mechanically damaged seed.
Accessing this information, particularly the seeds per kilogram and germination results, will help make a more informed decision on planting rates.
