The History of Naturally Colored Cotton JULIA BARATTA

otton’s colorful history began many was part of later U.S. history, centuries ago and in far-flung regions and that it has a small role in agriculture today. of the world. The original cultivars C Through the years, nat- were developed more than 5,000 years ago urally colored cotton has by the people of South and Central America, appeared primarily as a last- while other varieties were found to be indig- ditch effort to meet a need. During World War II (1939–1945), enous to Africa and Asia. There are also a for example, there was a shortage of number of references to cotton being grown dyes, so green and brown cotton was grown in India, China, Russia, Mexico, and Egypt. and used. Because the fibers had not been bred for At some point, naturally colored cotton length, after the war, naturally colored cotton fell out of favor again. made its entrance into America, probably In 1982, Sally Fox was working for a cotton during the seventeenth century. breeder when she found a bag of brown cotton Historically in America, white cotton was con- and seeds. The cotton, which had come from the sidered “king,” while naturally colored cotton was U.S. Department of Agriculture, had been part of discussed only as legend. In my research for this an effort to promote growing naturally colored article, I found few who had heard or read that fiber. Sally Fox’s more than twenty years of work slaves were sometimes allowed to grow natu- in the world of naturally colored cottons is ongo- rally colored cotton because of its “deficiencies”: ing: She began with that small bag and has built a shorter staple, or length of fiber, which made it a reputation for growing high-quality, longer-sta- more difficult to spin into usable thread, as well pled cotton of reddish-brown and shades of green. as its color, which rendered it useless for other She started with heirloom seeds, but her work has desired hues. been less preservation than getting the fiber to Is the story of slave-grown naturally colored cot- meet the requirements of the spinning machines. ton true or legend only? Although no one can verify She founded the company Vreseis Limited, which the story, there were confirmed slave activities that offers Foxfibre organic, naturally colored cottons. point to the possibility. Some plantations let slaves She also encourages mills to use naturally colored grow vegetables and raise a couple of chickens on a cotton to cut down on toxic wastes that result from small parcel of ground, occasionally called a “truck chemically dyeing fibers. patch.” Could cotton plants have been included? Today, some farmers raise cotton to preserve it. In some areas, slaves were allowed to go to town Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, Iowa, offers the on Sundays to sell and trade goods and to do some opportunity for people to exchange and save seeds. shopping for their own needs. Were some of the The organization publishes an annual yearbook that goods made of naturally colored cotton? The slaves offers a wide variety of seeds, including naturally at George Washington’s Mount Vernon could have colored cotton. gained knowledge about making yarn in the planta- James Bridges and his wife have been raising cot- tion’s spinning house. Although cotton didn’t tend to ton since 1989. Bridges grows four to five plants a perform well on looms, resources confirm that slave year, working hard to keep the color pure. He has women did knit. maintained a Green Lint variety, a brown cotton, Cotton certainly played a part in the history of and a white cotton originally from Kentucky. Cotton America, particularly during the years of slavery, but requires a long warm season and will cross-pollinate it’s far less certain whether naturally colored cotton easily, so the plants tend to be more difficult to raise played a role. We do know that for a brief interlude it for pure seed. Bridges still hand-picks the cotton from

© F+W Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Not to be reprinted. NEEDLEWORKTRADITIONS.COM 1 the seeds as was the pro- the staff notes, as long as they treat the plants as cess before the cotton gin tomato or pepper plants. was invented. Many of the naturally colored cottons available Davie Kennedy, in the United States are in shades of white, green, cultivates four acres of and brown. In other places in the world, the range gardens. His seed inven- of colors includes mocha, tan, gray, black, mahog- tory contains two white any, red, pink, blue, and cream. Peru has a number and several naturally col- of varieties growing throughout the country; grow- ored varieties of cotton. He ers have been encouraged by the Native Cotton alternates the colors of the cot- Project. The project was created and co-directed by ton he grows to help keep each color James Vreeland (who had discovered natural pig- as pure as possible. When he was mentation in cotton in the 1970s), when he learned growing up, his family grew cot- that the handspinning and weaving traditions of ton, which he remembers picking Peru were disappearing, along with naturally col- as a child. Kennedy has collected ored cotton. Since then, Guatemala and Colombia seeds for forty years, since he was in his twenties. have developed their own preservation efforts. Among his holdings are seeds of Arkansas Green These seed preservationists, both individuals and Lint, Texas Green Boll, brown cotton, and some organizations in the United States and elsewhere, are silky, long-stapled Sea Island varieties. among a growing number of enthusiasts who work Sandy Dodes has raised cotton in a community to save myriad varieties of plants. With its fascinating garden. She was successful growing green cotton history and compelling future, cotton is an excellent in an open area that was not protected. She started option for preservation efforts. Join the movement five seeds in a greenhouse in January; four germi- and grow some naturally colored cotton! ❖ nated. Three plants grew to be about 2 feet (0.6 m) tall; when they matured, she pulled them up, and F u r t h e r R e s o u r c e s the bolls eventually opened. Durham, Ann. “A Cotton-Picking Good Time or How I Discov- Glenn and Linda Drowns of Sand Hill ered a Cotton Gin in My Kitchen.” Spin-Off, Fall 2002. Preservation Center produce five varieties of cotton Lester, Julius. To Be A Slave. New York: Scholastic, 1968. in flowerpots for decorative purposes. They grow Ordal, Leslie. “At Cotton Clouds.” Spin-Off, Winter 2010. some of the showy late-season cotton varieties, Rhoades, Carol Huebscher. “Colored Cotton.” Spin-Off, Sum- mer 2008. which provide a lot of color when the bolls open. “Sally Fox, the Organic Cotton Queen.” Living Crafts, Spring Southern Exposure Seed Exchange encourages 2008. everyone to try and grow cotton. The company offers six varieties, along with the message that JULIA BARATTA has a variety of interests, which provide inspi- “everyone should grow and harvest a long row of ration for her writing. She has tried spinning cotton and looks cotton at least once in their lifetime”—in order to to experience American history in her garden this summer. understand what the slaves endured while harvest- ing cotton. Northern gardeners can grow cotton,

Colored Cotton Seed Resources

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, Mansfield, Missouri, (417) 924-8917, www.rareseeds.com. Garden Medicinals and Culinaries, Louisa, Virginia, Learn More (540) 872-8351, www.gardenmedicinals.com. PieceWork's July/August 2015 issue celebrates Sand Hill Preservation Center, Calamus, Iowa, cotton. Visit bit.ly/piecework-july-august-2015- (563) 246-2299, www.sandhillpreservation.com. digital. Seed Savers Exchange, Decorah, Iowa, (563) 382-5990; www.seedsavers.org. Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, Mineral, Virginia, (540) 894-9480, www.southernexposure.com. —J. B.