A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF TRANSPLANTING AND DIRECT SEEDING OF COTTON

Two years trial was carried out at Sids Agricultural Research Sta­tion, Beni-Suef Govemorate, Egypt, to investigate and compare normal direct seeding with transplanting cotton plants, under three hill spacing (20, 25 and 30 cm) and potassium fertilizer rates of 0, 24, and 48 kg K20/feddan using Giza 80 cotton cultivar during 1995 and 1996 sea­sons. Plant height at harvest was significantly greater in favour of di­rect late sowing when compared only with transplanting at 20cm be­tween hills. Node number of first fruiting branch was significantly higher for direct late sowing as compared with transplanting cotton at 20 cm between hills.Number of total and open bolls/plant was lower for direct late seeding than all transplanting treatments. Number of plants/fed was significantly higher for direct early and late sowing as compared with transplanting at 20cm between hills. The highest seed cotton yield/fed was produced by normal early sowing which was significantly than all treatments. While the differences between direct late sowing and an transplanting treatments were insignificant on this trait. Potassium (K20) levels had no significant effect on all traits under study except the number of total and open bolls/plant which were significantly decreased by raising potassium levels.