— 22 IREC Farmers' Newsletter No. 200 — Spring 2018 Kieran O’Keeffe1 and Janelle Montgomery2 1 Regional Extension Officer, CottonInfo, Southern NSW 2 Regional Extension Officer, CottonInfo Gwydir PHOTO: A series of trials in cotton crops across all growing regions investigated the relationship between irrigation management and nitrogen fertiliser efficiency. QUICK TAKE l Correct placement of pre-plant nitrogen fertiliser in cotton crops can minimise nitrogen losses in the first two irrigations. l Three-quarters of the irrigation events measured in replicated trials had an application efficiency of less than 80%, therefore there is significant room for improvement in irrigation management. l Increased irrigation flow rates can result in excess tailwaters if siphons are not pulled at the correct time; and this can significantly reduce the efficiency of an irrigation event. SAVE WATER AND USE NITROGEN BETTER WITH IMPROVED WATER MANAGEMENT — 22 IREC Farmers' Newsletter No. 200 — Spring 2018 Save water and nitrogen on cotton