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Healthy soil & irrigation scheduling to take account of soil water holding capacity & evaporative demand are key approaches to managing plant moisture status.
1788 The First Fleet brings cottonseed to Australia
1830 First shipment of cotton exported to England, consisting of three bags
1857 Small quantities of dryland cotton grown in Queensland
1861-65 American Civil War causes American cotton production to fall. Australia attempts to fill the gap
1870's Australian cotton production peaks then falls as world prices decline
1926 The Queensland Cotton Marketing Board is established. Government subsidy introduced to promote production in central Queensland
1934 Cotton production reaches 17,000 bales
1954 Cotton industry almost non-existent
1958 Keepit Dam is completed on the Namoi River in NSW, providing irrigation water to the Namoi Valley
1960 Limited irrigated cotton production commences in south-west Queensland
1961 Commercial crop planted at Wee Waa, using water from Keepit Dam
1966 Cotton established in the Macquarie Valley following completion of the Burrendong Dam. Cotton production also begins at Bourke
1968 Emerald Irrigation Area produces first exportable surplus
1971 Raw Cotton Bounty removed at the request of the cotton industry. Cotton production reaches 87,000 bales
1973 Cotton production on the Ord River Scheme ceases, mainly due to insect resistance to pesticides
1975 Cotton production reaches 110,000 bales
1976 Cotton established in Gwydir Valley at Moree using water from the newly constructed Copeton Dam
1977 The construction of the Pindari and Glenlyon Dams allows cotton to be grown in the Macintyre Valley in Southern Queensland
1980 Cotton production reaches 435,000 bales
1985 Cotton production reaches 1.1 million bales
1990 Cotton industry self-funds First Environmental Audit, leading to introduction of Best Management Practices (BMP)
1992 World record yields in Australia lead to record 2.2 million bale crop
1995 Drought causes harvest to fall to 1.5 million bales
1996 The first transgenic cotton variety (Ingard®) introduced to Australia
1997 Cotton production reaches 2.7 million bales
2001 Crop reaches record high of 3.4 million bales
2001 World cotton price reaches lowest level in nearly 30 years
2002 Roundup Ready® cotton introduced to Australia
2002-2004 Worst drought in 100 years results in 60 per cent reduction in crop size
2003 Cotton industry undertakes Second Environmental Audit
2003 Transgenic Bollgard II® variety introduced to Australia, replacing Ingard®
2005 Australian crop sets new world record yield, leading to a 2.9 million bale crop
2005-2006 95 per cent of Australia’s cotton growers plant transgenic varieties, accounting for 80 per cent of total cotton crop
See production figures for Australian Cotton regions for the last 10 years on the community pages
