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| Rugs 101 - Information Center for Oriental Rugs |
Materials - Cotton
Cotton, the purest form of cellulose found in nature, is the seed hair of the plants of the
genus gossypium. It is classififed as a natural, cellulose, monocellular, staple fiber. Cotton
has been cultivated for more than 5000 years, and has been growing wild for over 8000
years. Archaeologists found that it was grown and used for textile purposes in the Indus
valley well before 2100 BC and in Mexico around 3500 BC. Cotton has been of service to
mankind for so long that its versatility is almost unlimited. New uses are constantly being
discovered. Cotton provides thousands of useful products and creates millions of jobs as it
moves each year from field to fabric.
Different kinds and types of cotton are grown in the various parts of the world. Variations
among cotton fibers occur because of the growth conditions, including such factors as soil
composition, climatic conditions, fertilizers, and pests. The quality of cotton fiber is based
on its color, staple, fineness, and strength. Cotton varieties are often identified by the name
of the country or geographical region in which it originated.
Successful cultivation of cotton requires a long growing season, plenty of sunshine and
water during the growing time, and dry weather for harvesting. Generally, these conditions
are met within tropical and warm subtropical latitudes in the northern and southern
hemispheres. Cotton requires about 200 continuous days of warm weather; frost is harmful
to the plant. In the United States, production of the crop starts soon after the harvesting of
the preceding fall, when many farmers chop or shred the cotton stalks with machines. The
residue is left rough, and is plowed under to replenish minerals until the spring tillage. In
march or April, selected seeds are planted. Flowering plants appear in June, and the cotton
is gathered around august.
The ripe bolls are picked by machine or by hand, depending upon the industrial maturity of
the producing area. Mechanical picking is a fast, cost-effective method, cannot distinguish
between inferior bolls, and may also pick fragments. With trained hand-picking, higher
grades of cotton can be collected. This is the chosen methods of most rug producing
countries.
The seeds are then separated from the fibers in a process called ginning, which has
changed little since the invention by Eli Whitney over 200 years ago. The cotton gin,
mechanically separates the cotton fibers from the seeds. Still, in most rug producing
countries, the separation of seeds from the cotton fibers is a method done by hand. After
this is completed, the cotton is baled, and then prepared for spinning. Almost all spinning is
done by machine.
genus gossypium. It is classififed as a natural, cellulose, monocellular, staple fiber. Cotton
has been cultivated for more than 5000 years, and has been growing wild for over 8000
years. Archaeologists found that it was grown and used for textile purposes in the Indus
valley well before 2100 BC and in Mexico around 3500 BC. Cotton has been of service to
mankind for so long that its versatility is almost unlimited. New uses are constantly being
discovered. Cotton provides thousands of useful products and creates millions of jobs as it
moves each year from field to fabric.
Different kinds and types of cotton are grown in the various parts of the world. Variations
among cotton fibers occur because of the growth conditions, including such factors as soil
composition, climatic conditions, fertilizers, and pests. The quality of cotton fiber is based
on its color, staple, fineness, and strength. Cotton varieties are often identified by the name
of the country or geographical region in which it originated.
Successful cultivation of cotton requires a long growing season, plenty of sunshine and
water during the growing time, and dry weather for harvesting. Generally, these conditions
are met within tropical and warm subtropical latitudes in the northern and southern
hemispheres. Cotton requires about 200 continuous days of warm weather; frost is harmful
to the plant. In the United States, production of the crop starts soon after the harvesting of
the preceding fall, when many farmers chop or shred the cotton stalks with machines. The
residue is left rough, and is plowed under to replenish minerals until the spring tillage. In
march or April, selected seeds are planted. Flowering plants appear in June, and the cotton
is gathered around august.
The ripe bolls are picked by machine or by hand, depending upon the industrial maturity of
the producing area. Mechanical picking is a fast, cost-effective method, cannot distinguish
between inferior bolls, and may also pick fragments. With trained hand-picking, higher
grades of cotton can be collected. This is the chosen methods of most rug producing
countries.
The seeds are then separated from the fibers in a process called ginning, which has
changed little since the invention by Eli Whitney over 200 years ago. The cotton gin,
mechanically separates the cotton fibers from the seeds. Still, in most rug producing
countries, the separation of seeds from the cotton fibers is a method done by hand. After
this is completed, the cotton is baled, and then prepared for spinning. Almost all spinning is
done by machine.
Ripe cotton in its natural form.
Hand-spinning cotton and wool in India.