US Patent 7634870 Cytokinin enhancement of cotton

The growth and development of cotton is enhanced by an application of relatively low concentrations of a cytokinin to cotton seed or to a growing cotton plant at a stage of growth between the cotyledon stage and the six-leaf stage. Application of the cytokinins is effective to elicit one or more effects in the resultant plant including reduced apical dominance, increased rate of development of fruiting branches, decreased time to first bloom, increased number of cotton squares formed, thickening of the hypocotyl, reduced rate of leaf wilting, reduced water usage, and increased root development.