Cotton farmer enjoys raising unusual crop
By ROWENA PLETT
Staff writer
Cotton may not be king in Marion County, but the crop has been grown here successfully for more than 20 years.
Lewis Unruh lives 10 miles south of Hillsboro and has a Peabody address. He and his father, Charles, manage 2,000 acres of cropland, of which 250 acres are planted to cotton this year.
"Cotton needs rain to grow and develop, but it was hanging on better than soybeans during the hot days this summer," he said.
He said one reason cotton came to Kansas was because a shorter variety was developed which allowed a shorter growing season.
Southern Marion County seems to be the northern-most area where cotton can be consistently grown. Brock Baker of Peabody also produces cotton.
Lewis's father began planting cotton in 1983, and he and Lewis have grown it every year since then. The impetus to expand the acreage came in the early 1990s when the federal government passed "freedom to farm" legislation. Some years, almost 400 acres have been devoted to cotton.
The only crop failure they have had in the past 23 years resulted from a cool summer which didn't allow for proper maturation of crops of all kinds.
When they first started growing cotton, the crop was sold to a gin operator at Sterling. Since then, two cooperative cotton gins have been established at Winfield and Anthony.
Unruh said the Winfield operator grew up in west Texas, where cotton was king, but he thinks Kansas is better for growing cotton because there is less fluctuation in temperature from day to night.
Cotton is a perennial plant in the south but is treated like an annual in Kansas. It is planted when the soil is 65 degrees or warmer, about mid-May most years. Harvest falls in late October or November.
The Unruhs have a no-till operation, so the only ground preparation they do is to spray for weeds. Fertilization is similar to what is done for wheat. They have their own sprayer.
Roundup-ready cotton seed allows for spraying weeds several times after the plant is up, but it can't be sprayed after it is six or eight inches tall and has five leaves, because the chemical messes up its reproductive system.
A cotton field in bloom is a colorful sight. Buds form on the plants and branches from the base on up. Blossoms are creamy white when they open, then change to yellow, then pink, and finally, dark red. All of these colors can be seen in one field because each flower is in a different stage of life.
After three days, the flowers wither and fall, leaving green pods or cotton bolls. In prime conditions, the bolls can grow to the size of tennis balls.
Seeds form in the boll, and moist fibers grow and push out from the seeds.
Sometimes, if a lot of moisture is received, the cotton plant grows too fast. Then a growth regulator is sprayed on the plant to slow it down.
Bolls turn brown when the plant matures. The fibers continue to expand and finally split the boll apart to reveal the fluffy, white cotton.
The crop is harvested in late October or November, after frost causes the plant's leaves to drop. In southern climates, a chemical is applied to cause the leaves to drop artificially.
The Unruhs use a stripper machine, much like a combine, to strip the bolls from the plant.
Inside the machine, bolls are moved by air pressure into an extractor which removes some of the broken boll pieces. The cotton is collected in a large basket and dumped into a rectangular container called a module builder.
According to Unruh, it takes about 15 dumps, compressed, to fill the container, after which it is raised off the ground on its wheels and pulled forward by a tractor, leaving the cotton behind in a neat stack that is 32 feet long, nine feet high, and about seven feet wide. The stack is covered with a tarp until picked up by the processor.
Each stack weighs 10-12 tons and is approximately one-fourth cotton fiber, one-half seeds, and one-fourth trash. The ginning process separates them.
The fiber and seed are valuable commodities for which the producer gets paid. Each module produces approximately 12 bales of cotton.
One of the biggest drawbacks to growing cotton in Marion County, according to Lewis, is that it is highly sensitive to 2 4-D, a chemical commonly used to control weeds. The vapors alone can affect the plant and mess up its reproduction.
Lewis said he and his father are fortunate that most of their land is concentrated in one place, and pasture borders their land to the south.
He said he lets neighbors know if he is planting cotton next to their fields, so they will be aware of the situation.
"We get along pretty well," he said.
Another problem associated with cotton is the lack of residue for no-till farming. After cotton is harvested, it leaves little behind, causing the potential for soil erosion.
For that reason, the Unruhs like to follow a rotation of wheat, corn, cotton, and soybeans. Cornstalks can remain on the ground for a year or two to provide the necessary cover to prevent erosion.
Because cotton generally is harvested late, it is usually followed with a spring planting of soybeans.
The Unruhs usually limit cotton acreage to upland, where there is less potential for excess growth.
Lewis said he is satisfied with the profitability of the crop.
"It did really well for us last year, and it looks really good this year," he said.
As for why he grows cotton, he simply said, "We like to try new things."
Lewis's wife, Carrie, is a para-educator at Peabody Elementary School. Son Phil, 22, lives at Marion and attends Tabor College. Son Michael, 20, attends Bethel College. A third son, Jason, is a senior at Peabody-Burns High School.
