LITTLE ROCK—Recent rains have given cotton growers the moisture many of them were looking for, but it also brought some risks to the yield of some growers, agriculture experts said Monday.

“Overall, it is saving us money because we’re not running the wells,” said cotton expert Tom Barber of the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service.

But the wetness may bring boll rot in some acreage in southeast Arkansas, Barber said, one of a number of effects of the precipitation.

“This rain probably broke up some insect patterns,” Barber said. But he said some growers may need to spray as their crops head into the final weeks.

Scott Stiles, extension economist, said about 10 percent to 15 percent of Arkansas cotton acres are not irrigated and those acres aren’t going to have a very good yield. But for the rest, Stiles says they are looking at healthy yields of 1,000 pounds to 1,100 pounds per acre.

The lingering problem is the price. Like all commodities, cotton has come down in price of late. But cotton did not have a big run-up, as did corn and soybeans.

“Input costs have gone up so much and the price isn’t going up,” Barber said.

Pesticides, fertilizer and fuel for the pumps are all up sharply from a year ago.

“These input costs are killing us,” Barber said.

Stiles said cotton on the non-irrigated acres is maturing on schedule, having matured during the hot spell. He said the irrigated acres will be coming two weeks later than usual. The cold, wet spring delayed planting.

“We made up a lot of ground with the high temps we saw in July and early August,” Stiles said. Barber said last week’s cool weather slowed growth a little, but the current forecast of lows in the 60s and highs in the 90s provides “the optimal conditions for us to do well right now.”

About 700,000 acres are planted with cotton this year, down from 860,000 acres last year. About 1.17 million cotton acres were planted in Arkansas in 2006, a two-year drop of about 40 percent.

Barber said the price will have to come up or cotton acreage will continue to decline, particularly considering cotton has higher input costs than corn or soybeans.

“The price needs to go up for us to stay in cotton,” Barber said

But Barber said he is trying to remain optimistic about acreage for next year.