Friday, July 23, 2010

The Cotton Blooms

Pokeing around the garden I decided to show you how pretty a cotton plant can be, prior to spinning and sewing it. The bloom starts out off white, turns pinkish, darkens and dries up and falls off.

(I think I better press the green part)

After the flower falls, the pod forms. It is about the size of a ping pong ball here.

I planted about 10 plants, just to observe. It is in fields everywhere here, but up close is very interesting.

I took these from last fall

a field near....


Have a good weekend! Stay Cool!

22 comments:

LuLu Kellogg said...

Beautiful Marcie!

Have a lovely weekend,
LuLu♥

Dorthe said...

Marcie,
I never knew cotton plants, have such beautifull flowers, how lovely they dries up. Must be real special to grow in your garden, I would love to try that,-but guess ,it is not warm enough here-even warmer than ever before.
Have a glad, and happy week-end.
Hugs,Dorthe

June said...

Ohhh thanks for sharing these pictures. I have never seen cotton plants before and its lovely to see the whole process and pretty flowers
I hope you have a lovely weekend
hugs June xxxxxx

Katie@LeBeauPaonVictorien said...

I've always been curious how cotton bolls form: I had no idea they had such a pretty flower! Here in the North, we don't ever see cotton growing!

Cindy said...

Hi Marcie - thank you for the education! What an informative post,and the pictures are wonderful too. I wasn't familiar with the origins/flowers of the cotton plant either! Love the shot of "Butter N Egg LN"...so cute!

Bella's Rose Cottage said...

Hi, My Grandfather grew cotton. I remember visiting when I was a kid, it really is a pretty crop, but has wicked thorns! I had never seen the stages of the flowers pretty! Thanks for sharing:-)
Bella

Terri Kahrs said...

Marcie, the only cotton I've ever seen are those little balls in plastic bags that come from the drug store!!! Ohhh, how pretty those flowers are, and the pod is amazing when it pops with the cotton! Awesome!!! Thanks sooooo much for sharing! Hugs, Terri xoxo

The Tin Rabbit said...

Thank you for sharing Marcie! I knew nothing about cotton! It's just lovely in all the stages but especially the flower! Have a wonderful weekend~ xo, Ann

Castles Crowns and Cottages said...

Good morning, Marcie!! THank you for your visit, and I never saw the cotton plant in this state! How beautiful it is, actually! I hope that your weather has not been too stifling....we have had quite a perfect season here in Minnesota!

Please, feel free to come by anytime!

Anita

Bernideen said...

I enjoyed my visit here!

Anonymous said...

Marcie, this was fascinating. I didn't know they bloomed like that. So pretty. I'll bet you can use those cotton bolls in your artwork!
They must be very pliable to flatten out and stretch!
We're staying cool inside in the AC and DRY! Had downpours today but the sun's out now.
Is your music from the Anne of Green Gables TV PBS production? It's beautiful!!
Hugs, Diane

June said...

I had no idea Marcia. I have never seen a cotton plant, being from Idaho. (only potatoes)hehe!
The blooms are just lovely in every stage, aren't they? In fact, they are beautiful.
Thank you for always leaving the dearest words at my place. I love it when you visit and leave a footprint.
hugs

The Painted Nest said...

Hi Girl!!!!! Miss you!!! I'll call as soon as I can!!~~Hugs, Deborah

Pam of Eastlake Victorian said...

Marcie-

At first glance, I thought it looked like something delicious to eat on that beautiful plate! I never saw cotton growing... very interesting. What a beautiful AND useful plant!

-Pam

Dapoppins said...

I am going to call my kids down to see. We don't have cotton like that here, we have cotton trees, that kind of snow in late spring, light drifts of cotton like stuff, but not the real deal. And how lovely are the flowers and leaves.

and the name of that street is too cute.

Anonymous said...

Whatcha been up to this week, Miss Marcie? Missin' ya!

Hugs, Diane
PS: Just love your music here!

Pallas said...

The photo of the cotton plant flowers on the plate is lovely. I've always thought the cotton plant with the cotton was interesting, but now I realize how beautiful a field of those blooms must be.

Pondside said...

That is something completely new to me - cotton is beautiful! I don't know what I thought it would look like - never actually thought about it having a flower at all. Thanks for the visit to my blog - and for the lesson!

Rose ~Victorian Rose ~ said...

I am with the ladies above..I had NO idea what it took for God to make a cotton ball...LOL.
VERY interesting...not being from the South..I had no knowledge of that...thanks for the lesson.

Marcie, I do dry my own flowers...some dry better than others..and keep their color better.

When the fresh flowers look like they are at the "drying stage"...I simply remove the water in the container I have them in..and let them dry naturally in the container. It take about 10 days it seems, the more humid it is outdoors ..the better they preserve.
I like the "droop" to some of them and.... others stay upright. Go figure.

Rose

Fågel Blå said...

Hello!
Thanks for your sweet comments on my blog!
I be so happy!
Wonderful pictures from you!
I love them all!
have a nice week!
Kathrine

Barbara Jean said...

These are beautiful pictures Marcie.
Thank you for sharing them with us.

Hope you have a great week.

blessings

barbara jean

Shelley Noble said...

SO happy you showed this, Marcie! I never even knew cotton made blooms! DAH!