Post by bogorchid on Jul 13, 2023 3:26:53 GMT
I am starting a lifelong project in which I explore wild sericulture, the rearing of Saturniid silkmoths of my region on their wild food plants, in as hands-off a way as possible. This, for the eventual goal of weaving (with my own handmade backstrap or warp-weighted looms) and sewing full garments. I live in the taiga of northern Canada and so my options for species are very few. This first year, I have been raising polyphemus caterpillars (Antheraea polyphemus) on birch trees. I experienced high mortality for circumstances inside (starting them in an indoors container-a mistake-these are wild beings!) and outside (evacuations from wildfires meant I had to transport the caters more than once) my control. I have learned many lessons already, and next year hope to have a much better setup for them. My remaining caterpillars are in instars 3-4.
My first experiments with the cocoons themselves..I took the first few cocoons from which my first moths eclosed, and soaked them. I forgot to read about degumming, so I only used an alkaline bar soap and water solution. This hardly loosened the fibers, most sericin (which holds the silk together and makes it papery, rigid, cocoon) was probably still present. But I was still able to spin the silk surprisingly, from the cocoon itself, without even making it into a hanky or anything. A pleasant surprise, I was able to spin 6-10 yards of single cobwebby thread from each cocoon, size depending, which is more than I assumed. The method of drafting straight from the cocoon enabled me to grab extremely long and basically continuous strands of silk, but of course, as these were eclosed cocoons which have been broken by the moths, some strands were more continuous than others. Anecdotally, though I am still a beginner spinner, I found it even easier to spin this polyphemus silk into something very fine , than I have experienced with mulberry or tussah silk hankies! Which I found very surprising....Polyphemus silk feels just as strong. But again, it was not fully degummed,and so not as soft to touch, really had a bit of roughness or hardness to it. I believe the spin will come out neater and prettier with thorough degum. The silk is also naturally dyed by the leaves which the caterpillars attach their cocoons to, as a way of concealment. I love the tone. They still have that silken sheen and glimmer to them.
My next update will be at the end of the fire season once my caters are grown up. Then again once they've emerged from their cocoons next June. (All my projects are as slow as the seasons turning.) With those. I will do as I have done with slender stinging nettle before, and as I do when I wish to remove the fur from hides I am tanning, which is to use wood ash (to degum). From what I understand, you mainly want alkalinity. I hope that will do the trick. I also want to experiment with putting the silk into the bog/muskeg, as I do with my hides, and just see what happens to it in an anoxic, highly acidic, highly tannic environment. Maybe it'll just be dyed. Maybe it will turn brittle. Maybe something unexpectedly lovely will transpire? Maybe someday I can dance with luna, larch, and cecropia silkmoths. Maybe I will write a book when I'm twice my age and become an elder,master sericulturalist. All in time. You can see I get ahead of myself here. Thank you for reading.
My first experiments with the cocoons themselves..I took the first few cocoons from which my first moths eclosed, and soaked them. I forgot to read about degumming, so I only used an alkaline bar soap and water solution. This hardly loosened the fibers, most sericin (which holds the silk together and makes it papery, rigid, cocoon) was probably still present. But I was still able to spin the silk surprisingly, from the cocoon itself, without even making it into a hanky or anything. A pleasant surprise, I was able to spin 6-10 yards of single cobwebby thread from each cocoon, size depending, which is more than I assumed. The method of drafting straight from the cocoon enabled me to grab extremely long and basically continuous strands of silk, but of course, as these were eclosed cocoons which have been broken by the moths, some strands were more continuous than others. Anecdotally, though I am still a beginner spinner, I found it even easier to spin this polyphemus silk into something very fine , than I have experienced with mulberry or tussah silk hankies! Which I found very surprising....Polyphemus silk feels just as strong. But again, it was not fully degummed,and so not as soft to touch, really had a bit of roughness or hardness to it. I believe the spin will come out neater and prettier with thorough degum. The silk is also naturally dyed by the leaves which the caterpillars attach their cocoons to, as a way of concealment. I love the tone. They still have that silken sheen and glimmer to them.
My next update will be at the end of the fire season once my caters are grown up. Then again once they've emerged from their cocoons next June. (All my projects are as slow as the seasons turning.) With those. I will do as I have done with slender stinging nettle before, and as I do when I wish to remove the fur from hides I am tanning, which is to use wood ash (to degum). From what I understand, you mainly want alkalinity. I hope that will do the trick. I also want to experiment with putting the silk into the bog/muskeg, as I do with my hides, and just see what happens to it in an anoxic, highly acidic, highly tannic environment. Maybe it'll just be dyed. Maybe it will turn brittle. Maybe something unexpectedly lovely will transpire? Maybe someday I can dance with luna, larch, and cecropia silkmoths. Maybe I will write a book when I'm twice my age and become an elder,master sericulturalist. All in time. You can see I get ahead of myself here. Thank you for reading.
