Abiotic Stresses Mediated Changes in Morphophysiology of Cotton Plant

Cotton plant is a warm-weather-loving perennial shrub and now has been domesticated to an annual crop cycle for commercial purposes. It belongs to genus Gossypium (G. hirsutum L., G. barbadense L., G. herbaceum L., G. arboreum L.), widely grown in arid, semiarid, and tropical climates. Globally, of these, G. hirsutum L. (the upland cottons) occupies about 95% of total 33–35 million hectares (2.5% of arable land) of land under cotton cultivation. Cotton crop is not only a natural fiber resource but also a food and feed for billions of humans and livestock. The projected increase in population is 9.0 billion by 2030, which would require an additional quantum of fiber and cotton seed production by more than 70% over the current level of productivity. Cotton plant having an indeterminate growth habit is highly vulnerable to occurrence of persistent and/or intermittent changes in the environments. The footprints of abiotic stresses are more visible on growth and development than those of biotic stresses. In the days to come, under the aegis of climate change, the sustainability of cotton productivity from productive and marginal lands rests by maintaining balance between vegetative and reproductive development from seedlings through maturity. The prevalence of imbalance state (either short or long duration) could lead to loss in farm income. The potential yield could be harvested by transitioning cotton plant from “green cotton” to “white cotton.” This is an effort to manipulate the plant for transporting its greater photo-assimilates from source to sink organs. Farm manager is ought to be proactive and skillful in adopting certain management tools, monitoring crop development, selection of tolerant/resistant cultivars, nutrient management, and phytosanitary measures to reinforce cotton plant for abreasting the external vagaries.