The cotton variety 142F, with natural early leaf fall (NELF), was crossed with Tashkent 3 and L838WR and backcrossed to each parent. Backcrossing to 142F enhanced NELF in the progeny. By 25 September, the F2 hybrids had 42-85% fallen leaves, as against 37.5-47.5% in Tashkent 3 and 52-93% in 142F. The percentage of plants with over 80% NELF was negligible.