114 FIBER-PRODUCING PLANTS 



of Peru, but it is also grown to some extent in Brazil. This variety 

 is shorter and coarser than American cotton. The seeds are similar 

 to Sea Island cotton, but cling together in a compact cluster. 



Culture of Cotton. The ground is usually prep'ared for cotton 

 in February and March, and the seeds are usually planted in April 

 in rows four feet apart. The seed is usually planted by a one- 

 horse cotton drill or by a corn planter specially adjusted for cot- 

 ton. The amount sown varies from one to three bushels per acre. 

 The sprouts soon come through the soil, and the plant be- 

 gins to flower by the middle of June. Finally the blossoms drop 



off and the little 

 bolls of cotton take 

 their place. Within 

 two months the 

 bolls mature and 

 open. The plants 

 continue to bloom, 

 however, until Sep- 

 tember. The pick- 

 ing season extends 



Cotton planter. f rom August Until 



November or a little later, and as the bolls mature at different 

 times about four pickings are necessary in order to gather all 

 the crop. The cost of picking a bale of five hundred pounds 

 is about six dollars. , The cost of ginning and baling is about 

 one dollar, and usually the planter must spend another dollar 

 or more for insurance and storage charges pending the sale of his 

 cotton. 



Gins. The gins now in universal use are known as the saw 

 gin, invented by Whitney, and the roller gin. The latter has been 

 in use for ages. The roller gin gives the most satisfactory results 

 for upland cotton, but the saw gin is generally considered prefer- 

 able on account of its greater capacity. The seed is fed into a 

 hopper against revolving saws which remove the lint and allow 

 the seed to drop through openings provided for that purpose. A 

 revolving cylinder studded with bristles removes the lint from the 

 saws, and at the same time by its revolution a draft of air is created 

 which carries off the lint as fast as it is removed from the saws 



