Feb 15 to Mar 31 suitable for early cotton sowing in south, parts of central Punjab

MULTAN, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Feb, 2026) The Punjab Agriculture Department has issued advisory recommending early cotton cultivation and declaring mid-Feb to Mar 31 as the optimal sowing window available for district of south Punjab besides those in Faisalabad and Sahiwal divisions.

According to the advisory, districts falling in the Multan, Sahiwal, Faisalabad, Sargodha, and Dera Ghazi Khan divisions are most suitable for early cotton sowing. Farmers have been advised to cultivate only approved triple-gene cotton varieties recommended by the department.

The spokesman said that seed used for early cotton cultivation must be certified by the Federal Seed Certification and Registration Department (FSC&RD) and should be pure triple-gene, otherwise, non-triple-gene plants could die in case of glyphosate herbicide application.

Triple-gene varieties can tolerate glyphosate and possess resistance against major pests, particularly bollworms including pink bollworm.

Plant population per acre should be lower than that of normal-season, experts said and recommended spacing of 2.5 feet between rows and 1.5–2 feet between plants.

During dibbling, 4–5 seeds should be placed per point. For drill sowing of early cotton, an additional 2–3 kg seed per acre is advised. Growers, however, should arrange about 10% extra seed to fill gaps. Spokesman said that 5-6 kilogram seed with 60% germination strength or 4–5 kg seed with germination strength of 75% or higher is required per acre.

Experts urged farmers to follow the recommendations to ensure better crop yield.