Agronomy VI – Fibre Crops

Discover How to Grow Fibre Crops

• learn how to cultivate a wider range of fibre crops
• Diversify and innovate
• Improve the viability, profitability, and sustainability of farms

 Plant fibres, including cotton, jute, and others, have long been used to manufacture fabrics and ropes, as well as for a variety of other purposes, including those related to architecture and construction.Plant fibre production—growing, harvesting, processing, and product development—is a huge global industry. Obviously, that entire business is supported by farm production. The creation of the raw material is the main topic of this course.Who should take this course?

• Farmers and agricultural labourers
• Farm support services include providing resources, counsel, encouragement, education, and information.
• Students, researchers, businesspeople, and anybody else interested in learning more about fibre crops

Lesson Structure

There are 10 lessons in this course:

1. Scope and Nature of Fibre Crops
   • Introduction
   • Fibre Properties
   • Fibre Uses
   • Types of Fibre Crops
   • Commercial Viability
   • Assessing Land Characteristics
   • Assessing land suitability
   • Broad Acre Farming
   • Crop Production Considerations
   • Production Systems
   • Crop Rotation and Management
   • Cover Crops
   • Crop Islands
2. Cotton – Part 1
   • Cotton Production
   • Sustainable Agriculture
   • Crop Rotation
   • Conservation Tillage
   • Insects and Diseases
   • Insects
   • Aphids
   • Armyworm
   • Cotton bollworm
   • Cotton Diseases
   • Fungal Diseases
   • Viral Diseases
   • Bacterial Diseases
   • Pesticides and insecticides
   • Cotton Life Cycle
   • Types of Cotton
   • Better Cotton Initiative
   • Genetic modification
3. Cotton – Part 2
   • Cotton Fibre Properties
   • Improving Properties of Cotton Fibre
   • Flexural testing
   • Industrial Use of Cotton
   • Cotton Fibre in Clothing
   • Wicking
   • Cotton – Milkweed blends
   • Ginning
   • Coloured Cotton
   • Textile Dyeing
   • Load Bearing Materials
   • Harvesting
   • Cotton Pickers
   • Cotton Strippers
   • Cotton Ginning
   • Uses of Cotton
4. Jute
   • Types and Properties of Jute
   • Jute Production
   • Climatic requirements for Jute
   • Jute Characteristics
   • Genetic Yield Improvements
   • Pests and Diseases
   • Harvesting
   • Uses and Consumption
5. Industrial Hemp
   • Terminology
   • Types and Properties
   • Cultivation
   • Countries of Production
   • Climate
   • Soil Fertility
   • Water
   • Pests and Diseases
   • Cost
   • Genetic Modification
   • Harvesting
   • Uses and Consumption
   • Geotextiles
   • Fabric
   • Carbon Capture
   • Phytoremediation
   • Hempseed
   • Building
   • Paper
   • Cannabidiol
6. Sunn Hemp and Kenaf (Deccan Hemp)
   • Sunn Hemp
   • Properties
   • Cultivation
   • Soil Fertility
   • Water
   • Cost
   • Phytoremediation
   • Pests and Diseases
   • Genetic Modification
   • Harvesting
   • Retting
   • Uses
   • Fibre
   • Weed Control
   • Green Manure
   • Biofuel
   • Kenaf (Deccan Hemp)
   • Types and Properties
   • Cultivation
   • Countries of Production
   • Climate
   • Soil Fertility
   • Water Requirements
   • Pests and Diseases
   • Harvesting and Processing
   • Uses and Consumption
   • Textiles
   • Food
   • Sustainable Material
   • Soil Structure
   • Paper
7. Flax
   • Types and Properties
   • Cultivation
   • Countries of Production
   • Climate
   • Soil
   • Water Requirement
   • Pests and Diseases
   • Genetic Modification
   • Harvesting
   • Processing
   • Uses and Consumption
   • Fabric
   • Bio Composites and Industrial Materials
   • Paper
   • Bioplastic
   • Food
8. Leaf Fibres and Grass Fibre
   • Abaca and sisal fibres
   • Abaca
   • Types and Properties
   • Production and Cultivation
   • Pests and Diseases
   • Harvesting and Processing
   • Uses and Consumption
   • Sisal
   • Sisal Cultivation
   • Harvesting and Processing
   • Uses and Consumption
   • Grass Fibres – sugarcane and bamboo
   • Sugarcane
   • Properties
   • Sugarcane Culture
   • Growing & Production
   • Soil Conditions
   • Ratooning
   • Tillage
   • Crop Rotation and Break Crops
   • Harvesting
   • Burn-offs
   • Sugarcane Straw
   • Sugarcane Yield Limitations
   • Pests and Diseases
   • Pathogens
   • Uses and Consumption
   • Sugar
   • Energy
   • Bioethanol
   • Bioplastics/Biomaterials
   • Paper and containers
   • Other Uses
   • Alcohol – Rum
   • Bamboo
   • Types and Properties
   • Cultivation
   • Pests and Diseases
   • Harvesting and Processing
   • Uses and Consumption
   • Food
   • Fuel
   • Medicine
   • Building Material
   • Furniture, Household Items and Accessories
   • Clothing
   • Paper
9. Fruit Fibre – Coir
   • Types and Properties of Coir
   • Coir Production and Cultivation
   • Countries of Production
   • Climate
   • Soil Fertility
   • Water Requirement
   • Cultivars
   • Pests and Diseases
   • Harvesting and Processing
   • Uses and Consumption
   • Cordage
   • Horticulture
   • Construction material
   • Biocontrol
10. Fibre Processing and the Fibre Future
    • Fibre Quality
    • Retting
    • Biological Retting
    • Dew Retting
    • Water Retting
    • Enzyme Retting
    • Chemical Retting
    • Mechanical Retting
    • Physical Retting
    • Drying
    • Fibre Future
    • Hybrid Composites
    • Geotextiles
    • Building Industry
    • Car Interiors
    • Genetic Improvements
    • Other Fibre Sources

Each lesson ends with an assignment that is sent in to the school, graded by the tutors there, and returned to you with any pertinent comments and suggestions—and, if necessary, additional reading—if they are applicable.

Aims

• Describe the range and characteristics of fibre crops in agronomy.
• Describe the various components of cotton growing.
• Describe the cultivation, harvesting, and usage of cotton.
• Describe the conditions necessary to grow a profitable crop of jute (Corchorus spp.).
• Describe the prerequisites for cultivating an industrial hemp crop for commercial purposes (Cannabis sativa).
• Describe the conditions needed to grow Sunn Hemp (Crotalaria juncea) and Kenaf as commercial crops (Hibiscus cannabinus).
• Describe the conditions needed to grow a commercial crop of flax (Linum spp.).
• Describe the conditions needed to grow abaca (Musa textilis), sisal (Agave sisalana), and bamboo for use as commercial leaf and grass fibre crops (Phyllostachys edulis).
• Describe the conditions necessary to grow a commercial crop of coir for fibre use.
• Describe the various fibres’ separation and processing steps for sale, as well as contemporary fibre usage.

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Fibre Crops: How are They Raised?

The majority of fibre crops have been grown in broad-acre monocultures. This is the practise of cultivating a single crop over a big area with little to no diversification. This type of farming leaves crops particularly vulnerable to weed and pest infestation. As they know they will always have food available, many predators return to these farms every year. Another significant issue in a monoculture is the soil’s loss of nutrients that are specifically beneficial to crops. Farmers are compelled to use more chemicals, such as herbicides, pesticides, and fertilisers, to offset these consequences. The cycle of monoculture is thus broken using a variety of techniques, such as crop rotations (also known as break crops), cover crops, intercropping, agroforestry, etc.Crop Management and Rotation By merely rotating crops, a lot of the issues brought on by monocultures can be reduced. As a general rule, space out plantings of the same crop over longer periods of time when there are more issues. Increasing sustainability could be accomplished by:

• Half of the year is spent growing a crop or crops, and the other half is spent grazing the same land.
• Rotate your crops such that no one variety is produced in the same paddock more than once every two to three years by growing a variety of crops on your farm (or preferably longer).
• Between crops, leavened ground (i.e. do not graze or grow a crop during the rest period).
• To revitalise the soil, grow cover crops for green manure at least once a year. This strategy is less successful in drier farming regions.
• Ley agricultural techniques. This entails alternating between pasture and the cultivation of cereal grains. When combined with grasses, annual medics or subclovers are helpful in producing feed of the highest calibre.

 Cover Crops Simply said, a cover crop is a plant that is raised with the intention of enhancing the health of the soil. Although it is most frequently sprayed or ploughed in, it can also be chopped and left to lie on the ground. The latter approach is quite laborious but may work. Although research has proven that this isn’t always the case, a cover crop should theoretically boost the organic content and fertility of the soil.Crop Islands Planting species-rich “islands” at regular intervals throughout the crop is one technique used. These resource islands, which can contain literally hundreds of different native plant species, appear to be quite successful at reducing pest and disease populations as well as elevating soil fertility. Managing weeds effectively is essential in every farming environment since it can significantly reduce yield.

What species of plants are grown for fibre?

Field crops known as fibre crops are primarily produced for their fibre, however they may also have other advantages. The most visible and popular fibre crop is cotton, but there are numerous other notable plants that are also farmed for fibre. Slender cells with thick secondary walls and a length that is significantly greater than its diameter are referred to as fibres. It is astounding how many different products may be made from fibre crops. Clothing is one of the products made from fibre crops, but there are other building materials, automobile and aerospace parts, body armour, paper, biofuels (ethanol), pharmaceuticals, textile, and geotextile products. 

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