The cotton picker has been rolling out the bales on the Liverpool Plains, and James Arnott, manager of McDonald's Creek district property Berwicks, is pleased to be halfway through his 250 hectares of cotton.
Mr Arnott said a wet Autumn had delayed the pick, but he was pleased to report an end was in sight.
Berwicks had grown cotton before the drought, but this season's crop is the first in about five years.
Mr Arnott said the variety 714B3F was planted at Berwicks, and apart from flood damage in late November, it grew well.
"It's been a relatively kind season, we've had normal levels of weed control, and the pest pressure hasn't been a problem," he said.
"We're estimating the yields to be about seven bales/ha.
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Berwicks also grew about 1900ha of sorghum with an average yield of about 6.5tonnes/ha this summer.
Mr Arnott said soil moisture levels indicated that a similar amount of sorghum would be planted later this year. While soil moisture in the cotton country wasn't as good, he is considering repeating this season's planting.
The agronomist for Berwicks is Peter McKenzie, from Agricultural Consulting and Extension Services, who said that "if you had to write a script on how to grow a great cotton crop, then the Berwicks' result would be it".
He said plants emerged well at a population of nine or 10 per lineal metre.
"It's not an ideal population, but given the season, it went well," Mr McKenzie said.
He said pest problems were minimal during the growing season, so no sucking pest control programs were employed.
In particular, populations of spiders were at numbers Mr McKenzie said he and his employee agronomist Jo Millward had never seen before.
He believes that programs of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) adopted by Berwicks had resulted in the vast population of spiders in the crop.
"We've been doing IPM at Berwicks for a number of years," he said. "Combined with the use of 'soft' chemicals and improved seasons, I believe these numbers will continue to build up."
Berwicks in previous years had been involved with a large number of trials on row spacing for dryland cotton.
This, in concert with precision planting, electromagnetic surveys, soil testing and mapping and previous yield maps, also drove decisions on how the paddocks were evaluated.
"We now manage our crop establishment in zones rather than on a paddock scale, and this goes a long way to even up and boost yields," he said.
Mr McKenzie said this season's cotton yield will create a lot of excitement and should inspire other farmers in the region to consider the crop as a summer alternative.
Mr McKenzie said the management of Berwicks by Mr Arnott has been recognised with an Innovation Award from the Upper Namoi Cotton Growers Association.
Simon Chamberlain
I have comprehensive experience in rural and regional journalism, as well as more than six years as a media officer for several politicians and worked in local government. I rejoined The Land in May 2022 and have loved being back in harness, reporting on a massive range of topics.
I have comprehensive experience in rural and regional journalism, as well as more than six years as a media officer for several politicians and worked in local government. I rejoined The Land in May 2022 and have loved being back in harness, reporting on a massive range of topics.
