The First Forty Days are a critical time period in the production of a cotton crop. During the First Forty Days a stand is established and the framework and foundation for successful and profitable cotton production for the rest of the season is laid.

The First Forty Days are a critical time period in the production of a cotton crop. During the First Forty Days a stand is established and the framework and foundation for successful and profitable cotton production for the rest of the season is laid. Once the First Forty Days have passed, management focus for cotton shifts to the Fruiting to Finish phase in which cotton is protected and managed for high yields and timely harvests.

Recognizing the importance of best management practices during these two periods of a cotton crop, a group of cotton experts from across the belt gathered for a series of workshops at which the best management practices for various aspects of cotton production could be agreed upon and used as an educational tool to move the cotton industry forward while identifying pressing research needs.

The web pages available on the right hand side summarize the Best Management Practice (BMP) recommendations developed by a multi-discipline, multi-state congress of research and Extension agronomists, pathologists/nematologists, entomologists, physiologists, weed scientists, economists, and crop consultants.

Two independent work groups, representing comparable agronomic production systems, convened in a coordinated planning process; once in 2005, twice in 2006, and once in 2007. The Lower South Agronomic Zone includes South Texas to Georgia. The Upper South Agronomic Zone includes New Mexico to Virginia.