About cotton

Cotton is the most important natural fibre that constitutes a half of the world textile industry.

The source of this good is a plant that belongs to malvaceae family, botanically known as gossypium hirsutum – cotton (upland cotton).The plant is autogamous and can reach a height of even 3,5 m in natural environment. On a plantation, depending on species, cotton shrubs reach up to 1,2 m height. Its roots can grow even 1,5 m deep. It has leafs tapering to a long point, big flowers changing their colour after pollination and capsule fruits with long and short fibres – the source of cotton yarn. Fibres of seed cotton consist in 90% of cellulose and trace amounts of water, fat, wax and nitrogen compounds.

There are about 40 species of cotton, however, only 4 are of commercial importance: African cotton, Indian cotton called the green one, Egyptian cotton and plain cotton called hirsute.