Medium-sized, loosely branched shrub with hairy branches, heart-shaped, often tripartite leaves, and white, yellow or pink flowers. The capsules, which are green at first, burst open when ripe to reveal seeds embedded in white seed hairs up to 5 cm in length.
The cotton plant produces the single most important plant fibre used by the textiles industry. The seeds of the ovate capsules can also be processed into cooking oil, but this requires the mildly poisonous gossypol contained in the seeds to be chemically destroyed.
We have harvested the cotton’s white seed hairs and turned them into yarn. Without the aid of a machine, this is hard work!
Central America
Basel Botanical Garden, Weltacker Attiswil
The cotton plant produces the single most important plant fibre used by the textiles industry. The seeds of the ovate capsules can also be processed into cooking oil, but this requires the mildly poisonous gossypol contained in the seeds to be chemically destroyed.
We have harvested the cotton’s white seed hairs and turned them into yarn. Without the aid of a machine, this is hard work!
