ABSTRACT

Bollgard II^® cotton, which contains two B.t. genes, Cry1Ac and Cry2Ab, has been evaluated in small, regulated trials for several years across the Cotton Belt. Federal registration of Bollgard II in December of 2002 allowed for commercial launch with cotton growers in 2003. This report summarizes the results of large-scale field trials in LA, MS, AR, TN, AL, GA, SC, NC and VA in 2003. Our objectives were threefold: (1) to determine differences in insecticide spray numbers and costs among the technologies (Bollgard II, Bollgard and non-B.t.) under grower conditions (2) to determine the impact of technologies on yield and (3) to compare the overall economics of current Bollgard II varieties with “sister-line” Bollgard and non-B.t. varieties under grower conditions.