— 16 IREC Farmers' Newsletter No. 200 — Spring 2018 Kieran O’Keeffe Regional Extension Officer, Southern NSW CottonInfo team PHOTO: An end of season survey of cotton growers provided valuable information for review and benchmarking of the 2017–18 cotton growing season. CREDIT: Cotton Seed Distributors Ltd QUICK TAKE l During the 2017–18 growing season, the southern cotton growing region experienced fewer cold shocks and more hot shocks than average. l Yields were above average for the season, with most farms averaging 11–12 bales/ha. This is above the long-term average of 10.8 bales/ha. l Good to average yields combined with exceptional lint and cotton seed prices saw average gross margin per hectare (GM/ha) returns of $2460. l Estimated water use ranged from 8 to 13 ML/ha, with the average across the survey data set being 10 ML/ha. THE 2018 COTTON SEASON REVIEW — 16 IREC Farmers' Newsletter No. 200 — Spring 2018 Cotton survey results