Six Lock Boll

I will be honest with you, I didn't know what a five lock boll of cotton was until a farmer took that name as his handle and started posting on NewAgTalk.  I would like to meet him someday, he is an interesting character.

One of our Australian posters one upped Five Lock today by posting a six lock boll.  A boll is usually divided into four sections or four locks, like locks of hair.  Less then four is a poor crop, five lock is exceptional.  I had never heard of six locks.

This could be called a "freak of nature" or the result of good genetics and good environment.  The seed breeders bring the genetics since the very first plant of that specie and we bring the best environment for those genetics since crops were first cultivated.  We can't control the weather but we even control the drainage and sometimes the water through irrigation.

Is a six lock boll like a five or six bean pod?  I've seen five but never six.  Four is a very good sign that we good genetics, weather to allow them to express and weather to let them develop.  Since cotton is probably GMO,  I don't what impact that had on the six locks.  Same on the soybeans, I see more exceptional pods in non GMO soybeans but that is what I spend my summer looking at.  I inspect soybeans for seed, food and shipment.  GMO beans don't get an independent third party inspection like mine.  They are sold as generic soybeans.

Here's hoping for a five or six lock boll to all of you cotton growers this year.  The demand for cotton is good and that is good for price of other crops.

There is nothing like good competition for our commodities.

Ed