''Gossypium herbaceum'', commonly known as Levant cotton, is a species of

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

native to the semi-arid regions of

sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lie south of the Sahara. These include Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, and West Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the list of sovereign states and ...

and

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

, where it still grows perennially in the wild as a

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

Description

''G. herbaceum'' has high stems that grow high with wide, hairy leaves. Their flowers are small and yellow with a purple center. The plant exhibits extrafloral nectariesInduction of cotton extrafloral nectar production in response to herbivory does not require a herbivore-specific elicitor. F. L. Wäckers and R. Wunderlin, Proceedings of the 10th International Symposium on Insect-Plant Relationships pp 149-154, Part of the Series Entomologica book series (SENT, volume 56) (calyculal nectaria, found on the receptacle, near the base of the calyculus). When ripe and in warm weather, the flower capsule will burst and expose the cotton surrounding the

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

s firmly. The cotton produced by this plant is short, about long and is firmly attached to the seed, which is covered in hairy down. Cotton fibres grow from the surface of the seeds and can be separated from these by hand or mechanically; the long fibres are called lint. The cotton fibres consist of nearly pure

cellulose Cellulose is an organic compound with the chemical formula, formula , a polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several hundred to many thousands of glycosidic bond, β(1→4) linked glucose, D-glucose units. Cellulose is an important s ...

. The expected yield is .

Uses

The main use of cotton lint is to produce

textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

s for clothing. The fibres are spun into

yarn Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, used in sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery, ropemaking, and the production of textiles. '' Thread'' is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern ...

s and these are woven into fabrics, in the farm or house or in factories. Cotton as a fabric is much appreciated because of its comfortable, breathable properties, its resistance and also because it is easily stained. The cotton plant itself has medicinal uses, and can be cultivated traditionally, in house backyards, for, e.g., women's menstrual cycle pains and irregular bleeding. It is also known to be used after birth to expel the placenta and to increase the

lactation Lactation describes the secretion of milk from the mammary glands and the period of time that a mother lactates to feed her young. The process naturally occurs with all sexually mature female mammals, although it may predate mammals. The process ...

, as well as for gastrointestinal issues, such as hemorrhages and diarrhea, for nausea,

fever Fever or pyrexia in humans is a symptom of an anti-infection defense mechanism that appears with Human body temperature, body temperature exceeding the normal range caused by an increase in the body's temperature Human body temperature#Fever, s ...

s and headaches. In the Levant seeds of ''Gossypium herbaceum'' were also used for food, feed or oil extraction. Cotton seeds, containing up to 20% oil and 20% proteins, are potentially highly rich as food or feed. Nevertheless, small glands present in all the plant organs of the ''Gossypium'' species, except the roots, and especially abundant in the seeds, contain toxic chemicals, in particular the

polyphenol Polyphenols () are a large family of naturally occurring phenols. They are abundant in plants and structurally diverse. Polyphenols include phenolic acids, flavonoids, tannic acid, and ellagitannin, some of which have been used historically as ...

ic compound gossypol. The gossypol is highly toxic to animals and is an element of the plant direct defence system against herbivorous arthropods. It can cause severe growth and development disorders in humans as well as domestic animals, particularly monogastric animals, while polygastrics are more or less tolerant. For this reason, using oil or whole seeds for human nutrition is dependent upon some way of elimination of the gossypol, through heating or other treatment. The gossypol extracted from cotton seeds has a potential use as a male contraceptive but can cause irreversible

infertility In biology, infertility is the inability of a male and female organism to Sexual reproduction, reproduce. It is usually not the natural state of a healthy organism that has reached sexual maturity, so children who have not undergone puberty, whi ...

after repeated use. In lab rat studies, it has been able to stop early pregnancies.Khan S, Balick MJ. Therapeutic plants of ayurveda: A review of selected clinical and other studies for 166 species. The J Alt & Comp Medicine. 2001; 7(5):405-515.

Gallery

File:草棉 Gossypium herbaceum 20221002174703 01.jpg , Axillary flower File:Pollen grain of Gossypium herbaceum.jpg, Pollen grain of ''Gossypium herbaceum'' File:草棉 Gossypium herbaceum 20221002174703 03.jpg , Calyx and immature fruit File:草棉 Gossypium herbaceum 20221002174703 06.jpg , Palmate leaf File:草棉 Gossypium herbaceum 20221002174703 08.jpg , High stem File:草棉 Gossypium herbaceum 20221002174703 11.jpg , Herbs or subshrubs

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q177615 Cotton herbaceum Flora of Africa Fiber plants Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus