Cotton Disease Loss Estimates from the United States — 2024

Cotton diseases can result in annual reductions in yield in the United States. Diseases of importance vary from year to year, and those that affect yield are based on many factors, including environmental conditions, crop production practices, and variety susceptibility to disease.

Plant pathologists representing 17 U.S. cotton-producing states estimated the percent yield losses from cotton diseases for each participating state. These states accounted for a total production of 14.4 million bales (one bale = 480 lbs.) of cotton lint in the United States in 2024 (Figure 1). The yield loss estimates include the diseases that impact cotton grouped into categories that include: root rots, stem diseases, seedling blights, foliar diseases, boll rots, and nematodes. For the purpose of this summary, cotton diseases were divided into two categories: foliar and boll or root and stem diseases.

This publication documents the impact of major diseases on cotton production during 2024 in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Cotton pathologists in these states estimate disease loss data annually; data collection began in 1952 for the entire U.S., and data collection for individual states began in 1965. It is important to note that methods for estimating disease loss may vary by state and/or over time. The estimates may be based on feedback from university Extension and personal experience with disease losses.

Values for cotton disease losses are based on yield before estimated losses occurred for each state and are determined using the formula (harvested bales/[{100 – percent estimated disease loss}/100]). Next, the formula ([percent loss/100] x yield before estimated loss) is used for determination of bales lost for each participating state. 

This publication seeks to quantify only yield losses caused by cotton diseases and does not determine additional costs associated with disease management, including crop scouting, fungicide/nematicide application and product cost, research associated with improving cotton varieties, or implementation of other management strategies.

2024 Conditions and Production

The United States produced 14.4 million bales of cotton on 11.2 million acres in 2024. An overall reduction of approximately one million acres were planted to cotton in 2024 than the annual average acreage planted to cotton from 2019 to 2023. The number of bales harvested in 2024 was 1.3 million less than the average annual number harvested from 2019 to 2023. Climate conditions during 2024 included warmer than average temperatures across cotton-growing states. Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia experienced record warm temperatures. In general, precipitation was near average to above average in many states, but significant portions of Texas, New Mexico, Alabama, and Arizona were dryer than normal.

2024 National Disease Losses

In 2024, disease reduced cotton yield by an estimated 5.4 percent, or 827,042 bales, across the U.S. Percent yield reduction in 2024 was the lowest ever recorded since data collection for individual states began in 1965. Fewer bales were estimated to have been lost due to disease in 2024 than in any other year except 1983. The top yield-reducing disease or disease group in 2024 across U.S. cotton-producing states was root-knot nematode, followed by reniform nematode, seedling diseases, Stemphylium leaf spot, and other nematodes, respectively (Table 1 and Figure 3). Compared to the top five yield-reducing diseases or disease groups, other diseases had much lower yield impacts, although they are still important yield-limiting cotton diseases. 

Table 1. Estimated cotton yield losses (number of bales) due to diseases in 17 U.S. cotton-producing states in the 2024 growing season.

¹Meloidogyne incognita is widespread and, therefore, the species of root-knot nematode that most reduces cotton yield, M. enterolobii causes less than 1 percent of estimated yield reduction due to root-knot nematodes; ²May include other nematodes not listed here; ³Consists of a 0.1% loss in Arizona.

Diseases in the Southwestern United States

The states reporting data from the Southwestern cotton-growing region accounted for 37.2 percent of cotton production in the U.S. Root-knot nematodes caused the greatest yield reduction in the Southwestern U.S. in 2024 — with 77,778 bales lost. Reniform nematode caused the second greatest yield losses, followed by seedling diseases, Fusarium wilt, and root rot (see Table 2). As in the previous two years, all five of the most significant diseases in this region were root and stem diseases. Overall, the yield reduction caused by disease in this region was 3.8 percent. 

Table 2. Estimated cotton yield losses due to the five most significant diseases in the Southwestern U.S. states¹ in 2024.

¹ Arizona, California, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Diseases in the Southeastern United States

The states reporting data from the Southeastern cotton-growing region accounted for 62.8 percent of cotton production in the U.S. Root-knot nematodes were the greatest cause of yield reduction, followed by reniform nematode, seedling diseases, Stemphylium leaf spot, and other nematodes. Due to the climate of Southeastern U.S. states, foliar diseases are generally more likely to pose problems than drier Southwestern states. Diseases reduced yield by an estimated 6.4 percent in the Southeastern states.

Table 3. Estimated cotton yield losses due to the five most significant diseases in the Southeastern U.S. states¹ in 2024.

¹ Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.

Disclaimer

The disease loss estimates in this publication were provided by University Extension cotton pathologists. This information is only a guide. The values in this publication are not intended to be exact values of cotton yield losses due to diseases. Participants used what they considered the best means available to estimate disease losses and assume no liability resulting from these estimates. 

Values reported in this document were accurate as of publication date and do not reflect corrections or updates occurring since that time. For the most up-to-date values and additional information on yield and economic losses due to diseases, see the Field Crop Disease and Insect Loss Calculator.

Acknowledgements

Data Compilation

Travis Faske, University of Arkansas and Adam Sisson, Iowa State University.

Authors

Travis Faske, University of Arkansas; Kathy Lawrence and Amanda Strayer-Scherer, Auburn University; Alex Hu and Randy Norton, University of Arizona; Robert Hutmacher, University of California; Zane Grabau and Ian Small, University of Florida; Bob Kemerait, University of Georgia; Adam Sisson, Iowa State University; Rodrigo Onofre, Kansas State University; Trey Price and Tristan Watson, Louisiana State University; Tom Allen, Mississippi State University; Chase Floyd and Bradley Wilson, University of Missouri; John Omololu Idowu, New Mexico State University; Daisy Ahumada and Adrienne Gorny, North Carolina State University; Maira Duffeck and Maxwell Smith, Oklahoma State University; John Mueller, Clemson University; Heather Kelly, University of Tennessee; Tom Isakeit and Terry Wheeler, Texas A&M University; and David Langston, University of Virginia.

Reviewers

Kiersten Wise, University of Kentucky and Daren Mueller, Iowa State University.

Production data from the United States Department of Agriculture-National Agriculture Statistics Service. Climate information from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-National Center for Environmental Information.

United States Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service. Quick Stats Database.

Sponsors

This project was supported by United States Department of Agriculture - National Institute of Food and Agriculture and Cotton, Inc.