Objective This experiment used the cotton varieties Xinluzao 80 as test materials recommended by Xinjiang Shihezi Academy of Agricultural Sciences. The different row spacing and planting densities were set up to study the effects of different row spacing configuration modes on cotton growth, the photosynthetic characteristics and defoliation effect, and the optimal plant pattern suitable for the growth of this cultivar was summarized, which might provide a theoretical basis for the development of high quality and efficient cultivation technology of this cultivar.

Methods Excel 2003, Origin 2022 and DPS software were used to analyze the data difference significance with illustrations, and furthermore the effects of Xinluzao 80 in different planting modes and density conditions on plant height, height of first fruit node, number of fruit branches, number of first fruit node, soil and plant analyzer development (SPAD), leaf area index (LAI), dry matter accumulation, defoliation rate, boll opening rate and yield with the view of exploring the optimal planting density and row spacing.

Results Under the same density, the plant height of three rows with one film was higher than that of six rows with one film, and the number of fruit branches of three rows with one film was higher than that of six rows with one film. The height of first fruit node decreased with the increase of planting density, and the number of first fruit node was not significantly different. Under low density conditions, the SPAD of three rows with one film was higher than that of six rows with one film, and under high density conditions, the SPAD of six rows with one film was higher than that of three rows with one film. The leaf area index of six rows with one film was larger than that of three rows with one film. In the same planting pattern, the leaf area index increased with increasing density. The accumulation of dry matter in three rows with one film was higher than that in six rows with one film. In three rows with one film, the accumulation of dry matter was the highest when the planting density was 15×10⁴ plants/hm². When the density was 13.5×10⁴ plants/hm², the ripening effect of defoliation was the best. The boll number per plant and boll weight of Xinluzao 80 were significantly different in different planting modes, and the number of boll, boll weight and seed cotton were three rows with one film > six rows with one film. And, the lint percentage was not significantly different.

Conclusion Under the planting mode of three rows with one film, the light and heat resources of Xinluzao 80 are reasonably distributed between plants and rows, and the advantages of the variety are fully utilized, which finally promotes the increase in the number of bolls and boll weight, thus reaching the goal of high quality and high yield.