The Wild Cotton flower is a beautiful pale yellow or white at first and grows wild on Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands.
From a very pale yellow, the cotton flower turns into a pretty pink
British Loyalists who were taking refuge from the American revolution set up Cotton and Sisal Plantations in the Turks and Caicos Islands. These were worked by imported slaves with the Cotton and Sisal being sold in London and New York. The cotton plantations were doomed as the competition was fierce and the soil was thin and not very fertile. After a hurricane in 1813, the cotton plantations were to perish.
After the blossom falls the Wild Cotton forms a tiny fruit called a boll.
The cotton boll bursts open when ripe to expose the packed seeds that are surrounded by the cotton fiber.
The dominant plantations in the Caicos Islands were those growing Cotton and apparently, cotton needed one slave for every 5 acres compared to one slave per acre on sugar plantations. Many of the plantation owners left the Islands because of the hurricane of 1813 and also the pest infestations. Many of the slaves were left behind. Apparently by 1820 many of the plantations had been abandoned but we do know that Wade’s Green (North Caicos) was still in use. It is also likely that Wade Stubb’s other interests at Cheshire Hall and Haulover were still in operation. The Turks and Caicos Islands have a short and limited History in the cotton industry.
All the cotton photos are taken of the plants growing at Harbour Club Villas ……… Yes, you too can grow them or come and see us in the islands as it grows wild here in different spots.
Cotton flowers and pods ready to burst forth with cotton fibres
- My cotton plants are loaded with cotton bolls right now and I’m sure to see more cotton plants sprouting up all over Harbour Club Villas
Enjoy the photos as this plant is quite showy when flowering as well as when full of cotton. The local birds here use this cotton when making their nests.
Cheers,
Marta
