Kazakhstan develops high-yield cotton varietyKazakh scientists have developed a new high-yield cotton variety called Maktaaral-5027, the Ministry of Agriculture announced Wednesday.This early-maturing cotton variety is already being introduced in the Turkistan region, the country’s producer of cotton.The new variety of cotton was developed by researchers from the Agricultural Experimental Station for Cotton and Melon Growing.Maktaaral-5027 belongs to the early-maturing group, requiring only 115 to 117 days from sprouting to the opening of the first boll. It demonstrates impressive productivity, yielding up to 4.34 tonnes per hectare, and shows strong resistance to wilt disease, the Ministry of Agriculture said in a statement.The fiber yield of Maktaaral-5027 is 37–38%, with fiber lengths ranging from 33.5 to 33.7 millimeters. The weight of 1,000 seeds is between 122.5 and 124.2 grams.The Agriculture Ministry added that the new cotton variety is pest-resistant, responds well to fertilization, tolerates delayed irrigation and is well-suited for mechanical harvesting.The area under cotton in Kazakhstan will reach 135,000 hectares this year.The Turkistan region is the only region in the country that produces and processes cotton. The region is home to 23 cotton processing facilities, producing more than 100,000 metric tonnes of cotton fiber a year. (ICE ALMATY)

Fonte notizia: INTERFAX