Experiments were done using simulated damage to investigate responses of early season cotton to defoliation, tipping out and fruit removal in a range of combinations and intensities. Pre-squaring cotton was very tolerant of relatively high levels of tip damage, even when combined with other forms of damage such as defoliation of fruit removal. Heavy early fruit loss did not affect yield but caused a delay in maturity of about seven days. The yield of pre-squaring cotton was unaffected by defoliation, even when 100% of true leaves were removed on three occasions. Pre-squaring cotton was tolerant of defoliation levels of up to 80% loss of true leaf area without affecting maturity. The capacity of cotton to recover from early damage has important implications for developing IPM systems.