THE PICKING OF COTTON 477 



throughout the season, weeds are prevented from seeding, 

 and the supply of moisture is maintained. 



623. Picking. As soon as a considerable number of the 

 bolls have opened, picking is begun. This operation usually 

 begins in the extreme south about August 15, while farther 

 north it may be delayed till September 15. Picking must 

 be done by hand, as no satisfactory machine for the purpose 

 has yet been produced, though many attempts have been 

 made to invent such a boon to the cotton producer. The 

 main difficulty with a mechanical picker is that the crop 

 ripens over a considerable period of time and all of it can not 

 be picked at once. The mechanical picker injures the plants 

 if it is used when they are yet growing, while if the cotton is 

 left in the field till the end of the season much of it will be 

 damaged by the weather. 



When the boll opens, the lint is easily dislodged by a 

 slight pull with the hand. Men, women, and children are 

 all engaged in the work of cotton picking. The lint is placed 

 in sacks or baskets as it is picked, and as these are filled they 

 are emptied into wagons to be hauled to the gin. In order 

 to gather all the crop in the best shape, three pickings are 

 usually made, the first as soon as the earlier bolls open, the 

 second when the majority of the bolls are ripe, and the third 

 after frost has stopped further growth. The number of 

 pickings may be reduced to two or may be increased, accord- 

 ing to the locality and the season. The bulk of the crop is 

 usually gathered at the second picking. Picking is the most 

 expensive part of cotton production, and the invention of a 

 satisfactory machine to do this work would mean almost as 

 much to the industry as the invention of the cotton gin. 



624. Ginning. The next process after the cotton is 

 picked is to separate the seed from the lint. The seed cotton 

 is hauled to the ginnery, where the lint is removed from the 



