Drip Irrigation For Cotton: Implications for Farm Profits

Cotton growers in parts of the arid Southwest can raise their profits by switching to water-saving drip irrigation. In experiments, it has cut water use by up to 50 percent and raised cotton yields by a half bale per acre and more in some locations. New detailed data in this report show that the costs of operating a drip system on a cotton farm in central Arizona are comparable with the costs of operating a conventional furrow irrigation system. The analysis permits an assessment of the profitability of drip-irrigated cotton in the Southwest.