About Cotton…
By Tempe Cropper Cotton is grown all over the world. There is an approximation that there are about 100 million cotton makers in the world. Some countries that produce cotton, other than Australia are, India, China, Pakistan, USA and Brazil which together are the world largest nations of producing cotton. Though Australia is a minor producer of cotton, though it is the second biggest exporter in cotton. In Australia the main cotton growth areas stretch from Leeton in New South Wales to Ayr is Queensland with 26 other towns of cotton regions in between. To grow cotton you need a hot and sunny environment. The soil needs to be drained and it needs a lot of rain or irrigation water during its growing season. Cotton is a natural fibre because it is grown out of a plant and is not manufactured by human hands. Because of this in 1990, people began to ask for cotton clothes and materials as it was a natural fibre and it was very comfortable wear. To grow cotton the first step is to plough the soil and place in spring cotton seeds in rows either using your hands or a machine. You then wait 3 weeks until the plant begins to rise and flower buds are formed. These flowers are white and then they turn red and fall off. A green fruit is formed inside the white flower. This green fruit is called Boll. Boll has seeds kept in it and then different sizes of white fibre grows around them. This white fibre is cotton. The cotton crop can easily get diseases, so farmers have to watch their cotton during the season. Farmers spray insecticides on their crop to keep all of the insects away. They do this because insects destroy 15% of the world’s cotton crops per year. Another hazard for the cotton crop is weeds because they take away the moisture that the cotton needs. When the boll opens up and you can see the cotton inside it, it is time for it to be harvested. When harvested the cotton can appear to be up to 6cm long, but usually it is much smaller than that. This process takes from 150 to 200 days. Next they are taken to the cotton gin (factory) where they separate the cotton fibre from the seeds. The cotton is then taken through a series of processes which start at the cotton being combed, then dried, then cleaned and then they are pressed into bales like hay. Then the cotton buyers buy the cotton and sell it to textile mills where they spin the cotton using the spinning machines. The cotton is then turned into yarn which is woven into cloth. The cloth is sometimes bleached or died into colours. Cotton is used for many things. In fact every part of the harvested cotton plant can be used. The cotton fibres that appear to be long are used to make cloths. The much shorter cotton fibres are sent to the paper industry and it is used there. The seeds are also useful as they can made into margarine or oil. To make the soil better the leaves and the stalks are mulched into the ground. The left over parts of the cotton plant can be used to feed animals. |