Crop on the Texas High Plains reported growing slowly thus far but pressure from thrips lacking. Wide diversity in growth stages noted.
Cotton futures plummeted Tuesday to a new low for the move and the lowest close since Dec. 11 in maturing July, now trading without limits, and settled with a triple-digit loss in December on thin overall volume.
July lost 571 points to settle at 81.81 cents, trading from down 222 points at 85.30 to down 619 points or 7.1% on its last tick at 81.33 cents. It had plunged the 400-point limit to its final tick on long liquidation on Monday prior to first notice day when most traders not wanting to make or take delivery typically have exited the front month.
December closed down 119 points to 76.49 cents, its lowest finish since June 17 and near the low of its 119-point range from unchanged at 77.68 to down 130 points at 76.38 cents.
Volume fell to an estimated 11,700 lots from 32,643 lots the previous session when spreads totaled 15,579 lots or 47%, EFS 3,184 lots and EFP 1,182 lots. Options volume totaled 2,179 calls and 1,903 puts.
On the crop scene, cotton in general has seemed to be growly slowly and behind “normal” expectations to this point on the Texas High Plains, says Apurba Barman, area extension cotton entomologist at Lubbock.
The good news is that the crop hasnΆt experienced significant thrips populations, he said in a Texas AgriLife Extension Service report in Focus on South Plains Agriculture. Thrips pressure has been negligible in cotton south of Lubbock.
“Our scouting efforts indicate that thrips numbers in cotton are really low and much below economic threshold levels, even in cases where cotton is planted next to wheat fields,” he said.
However, moderate thrips numbers have been noted in some areas of the northern High Plains, such as in Hale and Swisher Counties, and producers have applied insecticides, he said.
Although seeds with insecticide treatment should protect cotton plants from thrips for two to three weeks, prolonged periods to germinate and attain desired growth may reduce this “period of protection” and allow cotton to become vulnerable to injury, Barman said.
Plant phonological stages ranged mostly from newly emerged to four to five true leaves, he said. This wide diversity is linked to many factors, he explained, mentioning time of planting, field conditions and weather.
Cooler temperatures following recent rains were conducive for development of seedling diseases and poor root and upper plant growth, he said. Other fields have been damaged by hail and blowing sand.
Once cotton moves beyond the four-to-five true leaf stage, plants can sustain thrips injury without significant economic loss, Barman said.
Weeds are growing profusely, he said, noting that some weeds — such as Russian thistle and sliver leaf nightshade — can attract other such insect pests as fleahoppers and Lygus bugs into cotton fields.
As cotton enters the squaring stage, producers must keep an eye on square retention, the entomologist pointed out. Cotton fleahoppers will be of primary concern during early squaring of the fruit-set stage.
Statewide, cotton reached 15% squaring during the week ended Sunday, compared with 18% a year ago and 19% for the five-year average. The Texas crop was 97% planted, against 98% last year and on average.
Futures open interest fell 11,480 lots Monday to 145,800, with JulyΆs down 9,625 lots to 3,382 and DecemberΆs down 2,134 lots to 121,134. Cert stocks grew 2,219 bales to 439,198. There were 26,548 bales awaiting review.
World values as measured by the Cotlook A Index were flat Tuesday morning at 91.45 cents. The premium to MondayΆs July futures settlement widened 64 points to 3.93 cents.
Forward A Index values for 2014-15 gained 40 points to 84.75 cents, narrowing the discount to the 2013-14 index by that margin to 6.70 cents and the premium to MondayΆs December futures close by 24 points to 7.03 cents.
