Cotton producers participating in commercial scout programs have significantly higher yields than producers not participating, based on a survey of cotton pesticide use in 1989. Nonchemical pest control practices such as resistant plant varieties, stalk destruction, and pheromone traps are used to a greater extent on acreage in a professional scouting program. However, producers in a commercial scout program also use more pesticides--treating a higher proportion of planted acres and applying more treatments per acre.