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Morus alba, known as white mulberry, common mulberry and silkworm mulberry, [2] is a fast-growing, small to medium-sized mulberry tree which grows to 10–20 m (33–66 ft) tall. It is generally a short-lived tree with a lifespan comparable to that of humans, although there are some specimens known to be more than 250 years old. [ 3 ]
The Ancient Greeks and Romans cultivated the mulberry for silkworms; at least as early as 220 AD, Emperor Elagabalus wore a silk robe. [32] English clergy wore silk vestments from about 1500 onwards. [32] Mulberry and the silk industry played a role in colonial Virginia. [32]
Silkworms are the larvae of silk moths. The silkworm is of particular economic value, being a primary producer of silk. The silkworm's preferred food are the leaves of white mulberry, though they may eat other species of mulberry, and even leaves of other plants like the Osage orange. Domestic silk moths are entirely dependent on humans for ...
Bombyx is the genus of true silk moths or mulberry silk moths of the family Bombycidae, also known as silkworms, which are the larvae or caterpillars of silk moths. The genus was erected as a subgenus [ 2 ] by Carl Linnaeus in his 10th edition of Systema Naturae (1758).
In Terengganu, which is now part of Malaysia, a second generation of silkworm was being imported as early as 1764 for the country's silk textile industry, especially songket. [63] However, since the 1980s, Malaysia is no longer engaged in sericulture but does plant mulberry trees.
The silkworm Bombyx mori is fed on mulberry leaves cultivated in plantations. Silkworms are also found wild on forest trees, e.g Antheraea paphia which produces the tasar silk ( Tussah ). Antheraea paphia feeds on several trees such as Anogeissus latifolia , Terminalia tomentosa , T. arjuna ( Terminalia arjuna ), Lagerstroemia parviflora and ...
The silkworms are fed with mulberry leaves, and after the fourth moult, they climb a twig placed near them and spin their silken cocoons. The silk is a continuous filament comprising fibroin protein , secreted from two salivary glands in the head of each worm, and a gum called sericin , which cements the filaments.
Thailand's silkworm farmers cultivate both types of the domesticated silkworms that produce commercial silk: Samia ricini, commonly known as the eri silkworm, which produces matte eri silk, and the Bombyx mori, producer of the better known, glossy mulberry silk. [1] The latter is by far the larger silk producer of the two. [2]