Thank a cotton farmer if you’re wearing a comfy pair of blue jeans. Or thank Bent County farmer and Southeast Colorado Power Association member Caleb Wertz. His family has farmed in Bent County for multiple generations but never tried cotton until this year. He wanted to try a new crop in his rotation that wasn’t grass and needed a crop with yield potential like corn to maximize his acres. Wertz explained that it was a risk, but he did some due diligence before breaking ground and planting the new crop.
“I think if you go into anything educated, it doesn’t have to be scary; but it was definitely a risk. You can amend soil to grow about anything, but when it comes to our climate in this area, that was more of a concern. We were worried the freezes were going to be too early or too late in the year.”
According to the National Cotton Council of America, only 17 states produce cotton — Lubbock, Texas, is the largest producer. However, they’ll have to add Colorado to that list now. Wertz said that the science and technology in farming helped him decide to plant cotton. Forty years ago, Wertz mentioned it likely wouldn’t have been possible to grow cotton.
Weed control is the biggest challenge with a cotton crop. Wertz explained that the crop needed a canopy to shade out the weeds early on, which was hard to obtain. It ended up affecting Wertz’s yield. However, he added that he was happy with the outcome despite that challenge. Wertz averaged nearly 2 bales per acre and said for future plantings they will need a cultivator for weed control because relying on chemicals isn’t a good plan.
Cotton is nearly identical to corn in that it should go in the ground in May and can be harvested as early as October. Wertz harvested this first cotton crop in December because they were waiting for a piece of equipment — a stripper — they needed to harvest.
Wertz’s family has been farming in Bent County since 1919. He is the fifth generation on the farm and has traditionally grown crops such as corn, milo, alfalfa, and wheat. Both he and his dad agreed that trying something new would be a good thing.
“My dad and I have always been big proponents of trying new things, trying new technology, and doing tests to see what we could do with our ground, the ground that God has given us,” Wertz said. “My end goal is to prove that cotton is a feasible crop in this area that can be productive so that everyone can try it if they want to.”
Wertz pointed out that agriculture is a big enough struggle to gatekeep his crop, and he wants to share his experience with others.
“It’s important to me that people work together in the world that we live in right now. I think we’re in a place where all of us farmers need to be working together. We need to be communicating, working alongside each other, and sharing everything we possibly can; otherwise, we ain’t gonna make it.”
Author: Anne Boswell SECPA Communications Coordinator
