IMPORTANCE OF KECOGNIZIJSIG l-'ACTOUS OF WEEVIL. RESISTANCE. 21 



dibtricls. Ncvcrtlioless, the sinall-boll cottons have not gained any 

 general popiihirity in Texas, most farmers having returned to the 

 native big-boll varieties. Additional familiarity with the factors 

 that determine production under weevil conditions makes it pos- 

 sible to understand why the big-boll varieties do not show any such 

 serious disadvantage in weevil resistance as at first expected. 



The larger bolls require longer periods for full development, but 

 during most of the time they- are beyond the danger of weevil in- 

 jury. The growth of the bolls continues longer after the crucial 

 stage of weevil infestation has been reached. A big-boll variety 

 that could produce as many flowers and set as many bolls in the 

 same number of days as a small-boll variety could yield a larger 

 crop in pro]:)ortion to the increased size of the bolls, or larger bolls 

 nuiy make up for a deficiency in the number of flowers. The few ob- 

 servations that have been made do not indicate that big-boll varieties 

 fall very seriously below the small-boll sorts in their rates of flower- 

 ing and boll setting. The production of flowers and young bolls 

 may not make larger demands on a big-boll variety than on a small- 

 boll type. If the weevils are to prevent any further boll setting 

 after a certain date, a big-boll variety has the advantage of being 

 able to produce more cotton in each of the bolls that reaches maturity. 



In districts where the season of gi'owth is very short, early open- 

 ing of the bolls may be necessary to avoid the danger of frost, but 

 in a large part of the cotton belt the lapse of a few more days 

 before the bolls begin to open is not to be considered as a serious 

 disadvantage and is not likely to outweigh the stormproof quali- 

 ties, easier picking, and other desirable features of the big-boll 

 varieties. It is quite possible that the Texas big-boll type of cotton 

 may be found less satisfactory in humid regions and that special 

 selection may be necessary under the new conditions to establish 

 local strains with uniform expression of earliness and other desir- 

 able characters. In the drier regions of central and southern Texas, 

 where the growth of the plants is usually limited by drought, the 

 same general tendency to early fruiting appears in the big-boll and 

 small-boll types, but greater differences may be shown where more 

 abundant moisture provides for more luxuriant growth. 



IMPORTANCE OF RECOGNIZING FACTORS OF WEEVIL RESISTANCE. 



Too much stress can be laid upon early varieties as well as upon 

 early planting, because both these factors lose in effectiveness if 

 pushed to extremes. Cotton planted too early may develop more 

 slowly than cotton planted later, and varieties that begin fruiting 

 too soon may take longer to develop a full crop. These considera- 

 tions are well-nigh self-evident when once pointed out, especially 

 when viewed in relation to the dry-weather factor. If the benefits 



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