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Influence of Distance from Pollen Plant on Seed Produced by Male-Sterile Cotton

Because of increasing interest in hybrid cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L. a study was made in southern Arizona in 1973 and 1974 to determine a planting pattern of pollinator and male-sterile rows that would give satisfactory yields of hybrid seed. In 1973 two rows of pollen plants were alternated with 14 rows of male-sterile plants. The two male-sterile rows closest to the pollen plants produced 49% more seeds per flower than were produced in the remaining male-sterile rows. In 1974 an alternating pattern of 2 rows of pollen parents and 6 rows of male-sterile parents was planted in 12 replications. There were no significant differences in number of seeds produced per flower among these male-sterile rows. In both years the seeds were a higher percentage of the total boll weight in bolls from the male sterile plants than in bolls from the pollen plants (68.2 to 60.6 in 1973 and 68.2 to 62.0 in 1974).

In both years production of hybrid seed was satisfactory. The male-sterile plants produced 98% and 79% as many seeds per flower as the pollen plants in 1973 and 1974, respectively. The mean number of bees observed visiting cotton flowers at any given time varied from 0.45 to 10.13 per 100 flowers. Honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) made 38% of the total bee visits in 1973 and 84% in 1974.

Key Words: Hybrid cotton • Pollination • Bees • Gossypium spp.

² Professor of Plant Sciences, Univ. of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721.

Received for publication January 7, 1976.