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The cotton produced by this plant is short, about 25 millimetres (1 in) long and is firmly attached to the seed, which is covered in hairy down. Cotton fibres grow from the surface of the seeds and can be separated from these by hand or mechanically; the long fibres are called lint. The cotton fibres consist of nearly pure cellulose. The ...
The leaves are broad and lobed, with three to five (or rarely seven) lobes. The seeds are contained in a capsule called a "boll", each seed surrounded by fibres of two types. These fibres are the more commercially interesting part of the plant and they are separated from the seed by a process called ginning .
Gossypium hirsutum, also known as upland cotton or Mexican cotton, is the most widely planted species of cotton in the world. Globally, about 90% of all cotton production is of cultivars derived from this species. [2] In the United States, the world's largest exporter of cotton, it constitutes approximately 95% of all cotton production.
The "cotton" inside the capsules, although not so good quality as that of the kapok tree, has been used as stuffing (density = 0.27 g/cm 3). The wood can be used to make canoes, as wood pulp, and to make paper. The bark has been used to make ropes. From the seeds, it is possible to obtain vegetable oil (both edible and industrially useful).
Cotton also is used to make yarn used in crochet and knitting. Fabric also can be made from recycled or recovered cotton that otherwise would be thrown away during the spinning, weaving, or cutting process. While many fabrics are made completely of cotton, some materials blend cotton with other fibers, including rayon and synthetic fibers such ...
The leaves are glabrescent, meaning the pubescence is lost with age, but when it is present on young leaves, it is both stellate (i.e. star-shaped) and simple. [3] The flowers are set on short pedicels (i.e. flower stalks). An epicalyx is present, which is a series of subtending bracts that resemble sepals. Its large, ovate segments are dentate ...
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Natural color in cotton comes from pigments found in cotton; these pigments can produce shades ranging from tan to green and brown. [3] Naturally pigmented green cotton derives its color from caffeic acid, a derivative of cinnamic acid, found in the suberin (wax) layer which is deposited in alternating layers with cellulose around the outside of the cotton fiber.