So they began by establishing a farm, Agrocotton, where they planned to develop it as a field for agriculture with supplemental irrigation, Hector and Marcelo Linke told Agroperfiles.

The source of water for this irrigation initially came from the Laguna Yema reservoir, a reservoir of more than 14,000 hectares that was supplied with rainwater brought by the Teuquito Stream from a large basin in northwestern Formosa.

THE LACK OF RAIN

However, the lack of rain caused the lagoon to gradually lose its water level, making it impossible to irrigate the crops.

Since the lagoon is a reservoir of the Teuquito Stream, which runs parallel to the Bermejo River, approaching 6 kilometers at a place called Aibal Silencio, the Government of the Province of Formosa built a canal to pump water from the Bermejo River to the reservoir, allowing irrigation without using the lagoon's water, which would affect the aquatic ecosystem present in this semi-arid region of the province.

A MAJOR INVESTMENT

The investment by the Government of Formosa in bringing electricity to the Bermejo River was key. More than 80 kilometers of electrical grid were needed to install a pumping station on the river, enabling irrigation at cost-effective prices.

Regarding its geographical location, Agrocotton is located 17 kilometers from the Tropic of Capricorn, practically at the altitude of São Paulo, Brazil.

THE AGRONOMIC VISION

From an agronomic perspective, Agrocotton is located in an area with excellent conditions for irrigated agriculture.

"Guillermo Linke is the father of this philosophy, and his sons, Héctor and Marcelo Linke, the developers, can now demonstrate this example from northern Argentina to the entire country," says engineer Miguel Kolar, the company's technical advisor.

WHAT THE REGION IS LIKE

The region is characterized by excellent year-round sunlight and very low frost rates, allowing for the production of two summer crops per year.

The rotation involves planting corn in late July and early August, which will be harvested in January, and then planting soybeans for harvest in June, without major risks of frost.

The sequence of spring soybeans and corn or cotton in January also perfectly completes the crop cycles.

In other regions of the country where irrigation is available, one winter crop and one summer crop can be grown, but here, as in Brazil, two main crops can be harvested per year.

THE AREA RAINS 750 MM ANNUALLY

The area averages 750 mm of annual rainfall, but the high levels of sunlight and high temperatures mean that crop water demand exceeds rainfall, making dryland production difficult. This is why the western part of Formosa province is dedicated to livestock farming.

The company currently has 1,440 hectares under irrigation and 5,560 hectares of dryland agriculture, totaling 7,100 hectares of agricultural land on this farm.

The irrigation system used is a sprinkler system with forward-moving equipment that irrigates 720 hectares each.

Currently, there are two pieces of equipment installed, but the canals and all the systemization necessary to install six more pieces of the same size are in place, allowing for irrigation of 5,760 hectares.

FAR FROM THE PORT

The area's greatest weakness is the distance to the port of Rosario. We are 1,200 km away, which increases freight costs. That's why cotton will be a strategic crop in Agrocotton's production plan, as it has a ginner installed in the field to process the raw material at source, leaving the cottonseed as a protein supplement for the region's livestock.

In addition to cotton, the company is testing different crops. Safflower is yielding very good results in dryland conditions. We have also tested sesame, crops that tolerate high temperatures and require little water.

CAN PRODUCE 14,200 HECTARES

Agrocotton has the potential to produce 14,200 hectares of different crops per year on its 7,100 hectares of farmland.

It has all the productive potential of Brazil, which, with the spring harvest and the summer/fall harvest, achieves two annual harvests of coarse grains and cotton, making it the world's leading soybean producer. Now, with irrigation, we have the same potential.