 |
| Bombyx mori at work. |
Recently we visited the silk center in Negros Occidental where we source our
silk cocoons for facial grooming. It is run by a Japanese lady who also makes marvelous natural dyes and silk products. We are actually looking to carry their wonderful shawls at the shop.They are truly some of the best we've seen so far.
Apparently our climate is perfect for silk production, because we don't need greenhouses to keep the worms warm. The government has been trying to encourage sericulture as an alternative to conventional crop production, and in some places, the
people are starting to grow it instead of marijuana (whether that is a good or bad thing, is up to you...).
The silk worms are fed mulberry (
Morus alba) leaves. They then spin a cocoon, which is unraveled in hot water and spun into fibers. The pre-unravelled cocoon is what you use for your face, FYI. Here are a few more pictures:
 |
| Worm close-up. |
 |
| Mulberry or Morus alba leaf. The mulberry tree grows super vigorously, almost like a large weed. |
 |
| Must not let ants eat the worms. |
