Cotton "Gin" uises
by Theresa Farris
January 06, 2009
Cotton “Gin”uises
K/1 did some research after the cotton emerged to find out more about cotton. We found out with a little research that when the cotton boll first open it is not
ready to harvest until the cotton separates into four locks or sections. We waited 2 weeks and then we stripped the cotton fiber from the hull of four of the bolls on our plant. We spent time tearing the cotton away from the cottonseed. K/1 students will tell you that it was no easy task. We learned that a man named Eli Whitney designed the cotton gin (short for engine) to speed up separating the cotton fiber from the seeds.
We found a total of 62 seeds buried deep inside the fluffs of cotton. There were several bolls that had not opened at the time of our first harvest, but after another week those pods also opened.
Our plans are to plant the cottonseed in the spring and watch new cotton plants emerge, so we can see the full life cycle of a cotton plant.
