There is concern that cotton gins may serve as loci for reintroduction of boll weevils, Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman, to eradicated or suppressed zones when processing weevil-infested cotton from neighboring zones. Previous work has shown that virtually all weevils entering the gin in the seed cotton will be removed before they reach the gin stand. Those not killed by the seed cotton clea...

Impact of hybridization and irradiation in isolation of superior segregants in four crosses of desi cotton were studied and compared between F2 and F2M2 progenies. The F2M2 progenies of four crosses recorded higher per cent of superior segregants compared to F2 progenies for boll number, boll weight and halo length excepting in KS-16 x MB-3200 cross. Out of four F2M2 progenies, RDC-53 x 9747 cr...

Defoliants can increase machine harvest efficiency of cotton (Gossypium hirusutum L.), prevent lodging and reduce the time from defoliation to harvest. Coronatine (COR) is a chlorosis-inducing non-host-specific phytotoxin that induces leaf and/or fruit abscission in some crops. The present study investigates how COR might induce cotton leaf abscission by modulating genes involved in cell wall h...

Thirty-seven boll weevils, Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), were captured in pheromone traps near Lubbock, TX, in the Southern High Plains/Caprock eradication zone during August-October 2006. No boll weevils had been captured in this zone or neighboring zones to the north earlier in the year, and only very low numbers had been captured in neighboring zones to the ...

There is concern that cotton gins located in boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman, eradication zones serving customers in adjacent infested zones may serve as a site for boll weevil reintroductions if weevils are transported alive inside cotton modules. We surveyed fields in three distinct areas of Texas and found that weevils can be present in large numbers in cotton fields that hav...

The cotton boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis) causes severe cotton crop losses in North and South America. This report describes the presence of cysteine proteinase activity in the cotton boll weevil. Cysteine proteinase inhibitors from different sources were assayed against total A. grandis proteinases but, unexpectedly, no inhibitor tested was particularly effective. In order to screen for acti...

Salicylic acid (2-hydroxybenzoic acid) may help regulate several plant functions, including systemic acquired resistance to pathogens and the formation of flowers. The objective of this study was to characterize the effects of foliar-applied salicylic acid on cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) flowering, boll retention, and yield. Field experiments were conducted at two Mississippi locations in 199...