A former textile mother's popular science: talk to children about cotton while it's hot.

Without further ado, get to the point.

From the18th century, Britain in the period of industrial revolution needed a lot of cotton raw materials, and cotton planting in the southern United States entered a golden age.

At its peak, 82% of Britain's raw cotton came from America. As described in Gone with the Wind:

"The whole world is in urgent need of cotton, and this county (Clayton County in the novel, located in the southern United States) is a new land with fertile soil and rich cotton. Cotton is the heartbeat of this region, and planting and harvesting cotton is the heart relaxation and contraction of the red land. "

Planting cotton makes growers in the southern United States rich. However, just like the bloody history of sugar, cotton also influenced the dirtiest slave trade in the world history, which indirectly triggered the civil war to liberate slaves.

Cadic's picture book Cotton at Work describes the story of a little black girl who followed her parents to pick cotton. At present, hand-picked cotton has gradually withdrawn from the historical stage, and the high efficiency of industrialization has already forced machines to replace labor. This book became a microcosm of the end of that era.

Nowadays, mechanized cotton picking and drone plant protection have been popularized in China. Unfortunately, there are not many cotton stories I can tell my children. But I know a lot about cotton, so I can talk to my children. After all, I used to be a weaver.

First of all, an English version of the process from cotton to clothing:

Cotton, malvaceae, cotton. The growth cycle of cotton is 4-6 months.

It takes about two months from sowing to the first cotton flowering.

When cotton first blooms, the flowers are milky white, and after they turn dark red, the petals wither.

The small green capsules left are cotton peaches.

Cottonseeds are hidden in cotton bolls, and the fluff on cottonseed grows out of cottonseed skin and fills cotton bolls. The cotton peach splits when it matures, revealing soft cotton fibers.

Cotton fiber is white to white with yellow, about 2 to 4 cm long. The longer the fiber, the better the quality. The fiber of long-staple cotton is 3-4 cm, also known as sea island cotton, which can only be planted in Xinjiang in China.

After cotton harvest, the real work has just begun: bales of seed cotton containing cottonseed are sent to cotton ginning plant to separate cottonseed from cotton and turn it into lint.

After carding and combing, the cotton wool is cleaned and straightened, making the fiber longer and more flexible. And then twist and spun into yarn. Spinning and weaving are knitted or woven fabrics.

Knitted or woven fabrics must be dyed and finished before they really become fabrics for making clothes.

Then it can be sent to the garment factory for cutting and sewing, and the last T-shirt is born.

Finally, let's look at the key English words from cotton to T-shirts.

Fight monsters with fat mom and friends.

Financial female migrant workers have two male treasures at home.

Starting with chickens and baby chickens, always online.