Farmers advised to ensure regular irrigation, pest scouting for cotton crop

FAISALABAD, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 28th May, 2026) The agriculture experts have advised farmers to adopt timely irrigation and pest management practices to protect cotton crop from heat stress and pest attacks amid prevailing weather conditions.

A spokesperson for Agriculture (Extension) Department said here on Thursday that cotton growers should assess water requirement of the crop through proper water scouting and irrigate fields preferably during evening or night hours if moisture deficiency is observed.

He said that instead of applying excessive water in a single turn, the farmers should adopt light irrigation at intervals so that plant roots could easily absorb nutrients and breathe properly.

He further said that the farmers who cultivated cotton during May should irrigate the crop after every three days to minimize the adverse effects of intense heat.

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Similarly, those farmers who are still sowing cotton were advised to carry out sowing during morning or evening hours to avoid high temperature stress, he added.

He urged the cotton growers to conduct pest scouting at least twice a week for effective control of whitefly and other harmful insects.

The farmers should also ensure complete removal of weeds around cotton fields as weeds provide shelter for pests and increase the risk of infestation, he added.

He also emphasized regular pest scouting on alternate host plants including brinjal, cucumber, pumpkin, tomato, chili, okra and mung bean crops to prevent the spread of harmful insects to cotton fields.