Got bugs? Few things are worse than putting time and effort into planting and maintaining your cotton crops, only to have them be overrun and ruined by pests. There are numerous cotton crop pests, each bringing their own type of damage to your crop. In order to save your cotton crops, you need to eradicate the insects and prevent them from returning next season.
Pests not only damage your crops, but also put useless wear and tear on your machine and cotton harvester parts, resulting in a damaged crop. Here are our top 10 tips to help you rid your cotton crops of pests:
Crop monitoring: In order to maintain proper pest management, you should make sure to monitor and scout the field routinely. This will help you gather the most reliable information on the type of pests, the damage levels and pest population density, so that you can make the most informed decisions on pest management in the future.
Cotton-free periods: It’s recommended that you only plant cotton crops one time during the year. Double cropping might allow pest populations to carry over and grow, since they will have access to a continuous food supply.
Crop rotation: Similarly, crop rotation should be utilized after a cotton crop is harvested. Planting less favorable crops between cotton crops can help reduce the appearance of many typical cotton pests.
Selection of resistant varieties: Choosing to plant a pest-resistant or tolerant variety of cotton will help your crop tolerate a pest attack. Certain varieties are highly resistant to specific pests, so look into what kind of pests you experience most often to choose the best one.
Trap cropping: Trap cropping involves planting a small section of a preferred, or pest-attracting, crop near to the cotton crop as a trap. Once the pest is attracted to the crop and you identify signs of damage, the pest can be destroyed.
Proper crop spacing: Plant your cotton crops with enough space between them. Dense crops and close spacing can allow the faster multiplication and spread of pests.
Deep plowing: Plowing your fields deeply after harvesting can help to expose hibernating larvae and eggs of pests.
Crop residue destruction: After a harvest, effectively remove and destroy all residue of the cotton crop. Doing this will ensure that there is no carryover of the pest into the next cotton crop season.
Hand-picking and destroying: Hand-picking caterpillars and other adult larvae can help eliminate the potential development of insecticide resistance, as well as reduce a large future population of pests.
Pesticides: Pesticides or insecticides may be used to remove a given type of pest from your cotton crops. However, pesticides may cause pesticide-resistant pests and are not as sustainable as other approaches. Also consider botanical pesticides.
In order to properly remove and prevent pests from damaging your cotton crops this year, make sure to closely monitor your crops and use the tips provided. With proper care comes great crops!
Certi-Pik, USA is your one-stop shop for all your cotton harvester parts needs! For over 25 years, we’ve delivered quality cotton harvester parts to U.S. and international customers. Call us today!
There are many factors that determine cotton prices throughout the season, both directly and indirectly. With the help of a cotton harvester parts company, take a look at a couple of the factors that are sure to have an impact on prices this year.
Projections for production
Before each season, projections are made about what types of production the key players in the market expect to yield, with these numbers prone to fluctuate and adjust once the season begins and production gets underway. The expected weather during the growing season also plays a large role in these projections. For example, some areas in the Atlantic region of the United States are projected to see lower yields this year due to post-hurricane conditions, while other areas farther west are expected to have amenable growing seasons due to some early favorable weather.
Demand
As with any commodity that is offered in the worldwide marketplace, the demand will be a key determinant of market prices. If the global demand for cotton is up, there could be a call for increased exports from the U.S., as the quality of cotton that the U.S. crops are able to produce has been undisputedly the best available on the market for many years. World events can also have an effect on cotton’s global demand. One such world event that could lead to increased US exports is the reduction that is expected from two of the top three cotton producers in the world, China and India. With these countries expected to have fewer exports this season, there is a large gap in the market that U.S. farmers may be able to take advantage of. In fact, the American cotton industry is projected to support 86 percent of total exports this year, up from 72 percent at this time last year.
The cost and demand for other commodities could have a direct correlation as well. Crude oil is one such commodity whose price could directly impact cotton’s success. Gasoline is needed for the transportation of cotton from the farm to the gin, and then again when the cotton travels on to be exported, milled or stored. If the price of this oil is exceedingly high, it could manifest itself in the price of cotton due to high transportation costs. The importance of crude oil and its effects on prices could also manifest itself in a more indirect way. Some crude oil is converted into components that are used as oil-based raw material to create polyester. If the price of this oil goes down, polyester would then be cheaper to make, making polyester clothing more competitive in the marketplace, which could also have an effect on cotton prices.
Despite all of these complex factors, at the end of the day, all that farmers can control is their own land and production, and their readiness for the season. To make sure you are ready for each season, you will need suitable cotton harvester parts that are in good condition, and Certi-Pik, USA is ready to offer you the highest quality fabricated and manufactured parts for the top harvester brands. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you!
When it comes to cotton harvest season, getting as much cotton picked as efficiently as possible is the most important thing on most farmers’ minds. So when a valuable piece of harvesting machinery breaks down, the first thing you must do is try to fix it as quickly as possible so everyone can get back to work. But, while the reasoning is sound—more picking equals more money—you must remember to always take safety into serious consideration. Instead of jumping right in to fixing the problem, take a few minutes to consider the safest way to complete the task.
Here are some helpful tips to keep you and your team safe when performing maintenance and repairs on cotton harvester parts:
Check the power: Whether it’s a dead battery or broken belt, be sure that whatever you are working on is disconnected from its power source. Occasionally, a jammed gear or slipped belt can give the illusion of no power, when the reality is that a small change can set a machine back into motion. This can result in serious bodily injury or even death. For this reason, if you are working on a detachable harvesting unit, take the time to disconnect it from the main machine. It may take more time, but it will be the safer route to take.
Buy the right parts: One reason machines fail is that their owners get new or replacement parts that are either not meant for the job or are of low quality. This can mean premature failures and a lot of frustration. Think of it this way: while a top quality manufacturer-approved cotton picking machine or part may be more expensive up front, you are likely to save a lot of time and money in the long run by buying it—instead of replacing the same failing part over and over again.
Work in teams: While it might seem like a waste of manpower to tackle mechanical fixes as a team, it can be a great way to stay safe. When working with heavy tractor parts and mechanical systems, having someone around to shut the system down completely or get help during an emergency can be the difference between life and death. So, although you might take all the necessary precautions to keep yourself safe when making repairs, there is no telling when a hydraulic jack could fail or a sleeve might get caught in a moving gear.
Communicate: When working around heavy machinery, let your team know where you are and what you’ll be doing—communication is key. If you don’t show up for lunch or aren’t answering your phone, your team will know to send someone to check on you. It may seem silly now, but if you are in trouble, you’ll be glad you followed this advice.
If a part cannot be repaired, then it may be time to look into replacement cotton harvester parts. Luckily, you can find all the top quality machine parts for your cotton harvester at Certi-Pik, USA. Call us today to learn more!
Good maintenance helps cotton pickers last longer and delays the need to replace cotton harvester parts. Heavy high-use equipment that is exposed to many elements often does not stand up to everything you throw at it. Even if you take good care of your equipment, you also need to harvest efficiently, not only to secure the best quality cotton, but also to prevent unnecessary wear-and-tear on your harvester. Help your essential equipment by implementing these four good practices:
Read the whole manual: When you purchase a new harvester, the first thing you should do is read the manual. Even if you have an older model, you are still not off the hook—pick up that manual now and get familiar with it. If you buy a new machine, it will have its quirks, and the manual will alert you to many of them. Technical content may go over your head, but tips on cleaning, maintenance and troubleshooting will set you up for productive harvests every year. You do not need an engineering degree to understand what is going on with your harvester. You just need the desire to understand so you do not have to find creative solutions without background knowledge while you are stuck in the middle of a field.
Learn basic adjustments: Use will jolt your harvester and leave some parts misaligned, which affects your productivity. Being able to adjust equipment when necessary improves your harvest. Many of these tips are in your manual, and you will want to know the default settings for parts, too. If there are frequent adjustments required by your harvester, teach them to your workers as well, so they can continue their work without having to contact you for guidance.
Center rows: Crooked rows compromise tracking and picking. You will often miss crops and waste cotton by flattening plants rather than picking from them. Poor centering results when operators are in a hurry or lack proper training. Always ensure you have time to pick—deciding to harvest right before a big storm is a poor idea. When you hire, give the worker a test to see how they center rows. You will enjoy more profit and less waste this way.
Study lint quality: You need to know the best time to harvest, and that arises with knowledge of lint quality and the effects of weather on it. It is easy to pick cotton when it is too green or during less optimal weather. For example, wet weather opens the bolls on cotton plants and that makes picking inefficient. Rather than pick below-average product, wait for the field to dry out. If there is a frost, freezing makes cotton rough, and you will not secure a high price for it. Your best time is after the bolls open and clear days allow them to dry completely.
If you require cotton harvester parts, Certi-Pik USA offers a complete inventory. We offer a wide selection and we ship anywhere in the world. Call us today to place an order or request a catalog.
As a cotton harvester, you know that if your cotton picker goes down for any amount of time, your entire business will suffer. You will have to sort through several options when looking for cotton harvester replacement parts, and it will be important that you understand the differences between fabricated and manufacturer parts so that you can determine which will be best for your picker’s needs.
Parts produced by the original manufacturer
A part that is made by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) comes directly from the company that manufactured your cotton picker, and is stocked by the distributer. In many instances, it is logical to seek out this type of part when making repairs to your picker. If you are using a part that came directly from the manufacturer, you already have familiarity with the company, and thus can have confidence that the part you are purchasing will work effectively with your unit, as it will perform exactly the same as the part that you had before.
You can also be assured that you won’t have to spend added time fleshing out the specs, dimensions or compatibility with your machine. You can order the part and have it shipped out right away, which will shorten the amount of time that your picker will be out of commission. Most OEM parts come with a one-year warranty, which provides additional insurance should you experience any further issues.
Fabricated parts
Fabricated parts are custom made replacements for a cotton harvester, and having a part made specifically for your picker can have many advantages. If you have a part that has failed and you take it to the distributor to build a replacement part, your fabricator will have the benefit of using that broken part to see what exactly went wrong. From there, they can use that malfunctioning piece as a frame of reference to build a new part that avoids the same pitfalls that led to the failure, and reverse engineer something that has the potential to work better and last longer than the original. You will most likely be able to communicate with the fabricator before the piece is made, which would not be an option when ordering from the manufacturer, since all stock parts are made the same.
You might also have the chance to learn about the quality assurance protocols the fabricator has in place, making you a more informed consumer. Depending on the manufacturer of your cotton picker and their warranty procedures, there are cases where using a non-OEM part can void the warranty, so be sure to double check the guidelines before ordering anything.
Certi-Pik, USA has been offering quality fabricated parts in addition to our large selection of cotton harvester replacement parts from the top brands for almost 30 years, and you can trust that we will outfit you with whatever you need to make sure that your picker is running at full efficiency. Make sure to give us a call right away so they can provide you with the valuable parts you need to get your picker back in action as quickly as possible.
