I've Gone Country A blog about a city girl learning a whole new world

So far Fall has greeted us with rainy weather.

However, that allows little girls to wear cute rain boots…..I sure wish they made these for big girls.

It is also the time for picking cotton.

The brown part of this field is where they have already harvested the cotton.  The white is the cotton waiting to be picked.

This is a cotton boll.

Here is what a boll looks like when it first starts to open.

Interesting how it is divided into sections.

Inside each one of those puffy white sections are cotton seeds.  When cotton gets to this stage it reminds me of pop corn ….popping out of the shell.

It begins to hang….that is when you start to really notice it from a distance.  Here you can see the rain drops on the cotton.  When the cotton is dry it is really fluffy and pretty.  The fields look white from the road.  It is a beautiful sight.  This time of year the farmers really try to get the fields harvested before the rain sets in.

The cotton plant is considered a shrub.  I find it most amazing that someone figured out how to turn this…. into….yarn and cloth.

Here is some of the equipment that they use.  Of course that green beauty is a John Deere tractor…the other container is called a Module Builder.

The cotton pickers… of today.  Unlike years ago when the fields were harvested by people.  The teeth on the front of this machine goes between the rows.  Making it easier to gather most all the cotton that is on the plant. The container on this machine that holds the cotton is called a Boll Buggy.  Once the Boll Buggy is full it is taken to the Module Builder where it is pressed down by an arm looking device.  Once the Module Builder is full and firmly packed then it is removed…and all that remains is the Module.

The machines make quick work of it.  Here it is all covered up to keep it dry and clean.  It is my understanding that each module can weigh over 16,000 pounds.  It usually stays at the side of the field, covered until it is time to transfer it to the gin.

The gin separates the cotton and cleans it by removing leaves and dirt particles.  The seed is separated from what is called the fiber..the fluffy white part.  Once the fiber has been ginned it is called lint. It is then pressed together and made into great big bales. Once baled the cotton gets sent to merchants.  The cotton seed can be sold for animal use, it can be crushed having the oil extracted or there is another process that can allow the seeds to be processed and used for paper, plastic and batting.  Of course the seed once processed can be sold and used for another crop.

Pretty amazing.