How to grow cotton outdoors?
1. Plant 2-3 cotton seeds in a 4 inch wide peat pots with soil and compost. Plant the seeds about 1/2 to 1 inch deep into the peat pots.
2. Place the peat pots in a sunny location near the window. Keep the seeds warmed to about 65 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit. Water the peat pots lightly every other day to keep the seeds slightly damp at all times.
3. Thin out the weaker seedlings in each peat pot after the cotton seeds germinate and begin to sprout. Allow one strong, healthy cotton seedling to remain in each pot.
4. When the cotton plants outgrow the peat pots, cut the bottom of the peat pots and transfer them into 12 inch diameter planter pots. Fill the planter pots with a loam-based potting compost mixture, not one that’s peat-based.
5. Place the cotton plants outdoors in full sun during days when temperatures are well above 65 degrees Fahrenheit and there’s no heavy rain. Bring the plants indoors and place them in a sunny window when temperatures are cooler.
6. Feed the cotton plants once each week with a liquid plant fertiliser that’s high in Potash (Potassium) or use a Tomato Food or Rose Food available on the market. Follow the fertiliser dosage instructions on the label.
7. Cotton does not like too much water. Water the seedling and mature cotton plants two or three times per week to soak the soil around the roots, allowing the top layer of potting mixture to dry slightly between waterings.
8. Large yellow flowers appear in 45 days from sowing. Flowers wither off and form bolls which crack open to form fluffy cotton in about 130-150 days from sowing.
How to grow cotton indoors?
The cotton plant can be classified as a perennial; however it is mostly grown as an annual plant as it cannot withstand snow and frost. Cotton needs a lot of sun, warm weather and 120 to 155 months of frost-free temperatures to mature and produce cotton. Even if you don’t have long warm summers, you can still grow cotton indoors. It is possible to greatly extend the growing season for cotton plants, as well as better protect the plants from damaging winds and heavy rains. Cotton can be successfully grown indoors in UK and many other European countries with some care.
1. Work the soil to 3-4 inches deep to eliminate weeds.
2. Incorporate compost into the soil to provide nutrients for the cotton plant.
3. After all danger of frost has passed and soil temperatures have warmed up to 60 degrees, its time to plant cotton seeds.
4. Plant cotton seeds in moist soil, in groups of three seeds, 1 inch deep and 6 inches apart.
5. Cotton seeds germinate in 7 to 10 days if soil temperatures are above 60 degrees Fahrenheit (16 degrees Celsius).
6. Cotton does not like a lot of water. So water once in about 7 days. Water more frequently in summer months if leaves show signs of drying.
7. Feed the cotton plants with a granular or liquid plant fertiliser like a Rose Food available on the market. Follow the fertiliser dosage instructions on the label.
8. Large yellow flowers appear in 45 days from sowing. Flowers wither off and form bolls.
9. Stop watering 16-18 weeks from sowing when bolls have been formed, so that the plant begins to dry and shed their leaves, and the cotton boll will split open to form a fluffy ball.
