By Clint Thompson
The Georgia Cotton Commission and University of Georgia (UGA) Extension remind growers to keep their crop watered amid the hot and dry weather currently sweltering the South Georgia region.
UGA Extension cotton agronomist Camp Hand discusses the importance of producers ensuring their crop is receiving adequate moisture.
“If you’ve planted in the past week or so, definitely keep an eye on where you just planted with the heat that’s coming. Definitely keep some water on it if at all possible. Try to keep the soil moist and cool so you can get a good stand and get off to a good start. This late in the game, we need to be as good as possible,” Hand said.
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, the drought-like conditions worsened in Georgia over the past week. Most of the area is experiencing abnormally dry conditions, though some are moderately dry and a few counties are severely dry along the East coast.
“Everybody knows what happens when it gets really hot and dry. It could just end really badly,” Hand said. “We’ve just got to stay real vigilant with that for sure.”