Cotton acreage has almost tripled in the last five years in the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service District 1, which covers the 22 northernmost counties in the Panhandle. Dr. Jourdan Bell, AgriLife Extension agronomist in Amarillo, said the cropping picture has definitely changed as producers dealt with declining irrigation capacities, variable weather and lower commodity prices. In 2013, producers in District 1 planted 300,000 acres of cotton, compared to the 850,000 acres planted in 2018, Bell said. Of that 550,000-acre increase, 350,000 acres have been north of Amarillo. Although cotton production increased in every county, the largest expansions appear to be in Dallam,