I cannot sell my cotton immediately after picking. How do I store seed cotton on the farm without losing quality or rate?
How do I store harvested cotton on the farm before selling without losing quality (kapas)?
SSuresh Patidar4mo ago · 261 views
5 Answers
🌾Farmer.in Krishi TeamExpert ✓4mo ago
Seed cotton stores reasonably well if it is dry and clean, so the main risks are moisture, contamination, and pest damage while it waits to be sold. Pick only fully opened, dry bolls, and if cotton is even slightly damp let it dry before heaping, because damp cotton heats up, discolours, and loses grade. Store in a clean, dry, ventilated space off the ground, and use clean cotton cloth bags rather than plastic sacks to avoid contamination and condensation. Keep pickings of different quality separate, and keep out leaf trash, hair, and plastic which downgrade the lot. Protect from rats and rain. Avoid storing very long, since extended storage of unginned cotton can also carry over pink bollworm. For local storage and grading tips, check with your APMC mandi or local KVK.
KKailash Patidar4mo ago
Damp cotton was my early mistake, I heaped slightly moist cotton and it heated up and turned yellowish in the middle, losing grade. Now I make sure it is fully dry before storing, and I pick after the morning dew lifts. Dry cotton keeps its colour and rate much longer.
MMohan Verma4mo ago
I store on a raised wooden platform off the floor in a ventilated room, not directly on the ground where it picks up moisture and dirt. Cloth bags instead of plastic also stopped the sweating and condensation I used to get inside plastic sacks. Keeping it off the ground and airy made a real difference.
RRajesh Patidar3mo ago
Rats and the leftover heaps near the house were my problem, both spoiling the cotton and carrying over pink bollworm to next year. So I keep the store clean, protected from rats and rain, and do not hold the cotton too long. Selling within a reasonable time avoids both the pest carry over and quality loss.
DDevilal Patidar3mo ago
Keeping each picking separate while storing helped me hold the rate, because the clean early pickings are better quality than the late trashy ones, and mixing them drags the whole lot down. I bag and label them by picking and sell the good lots on their own merit. The buyer paid more for the clean separated lot than he would have for a mixed heap.