What kind of fabric ramie (photo below in the article)? It is made from the fibers of the Boehmeria Nivea plant, also known as Chinese nettle, white, green and nanduram. It belongs to the group of so-called bast cultures.
Varieties
This hardy perennial plant belonging to the nettle family yields up to 6 times a year. It produces many unbranched stems growing from underground rhizomes, and has a productive period of 6 to 20 years. Contains resins and pectins, which is why fibers can only be used after chemical treatment.
Real ramie, or Chinese nettle, called white ramie, is cultivated in China. The leaves of the plant are large, jagged, heart-shaped, covered with white villi from below, which give them a silvery appearance.
Bomeria is snow-white, or green ramie, originally from the Malay Peninsula. Its leaves are smaller, they are green below, and it is better suited for tropical climates.
Ramie fabric: a history of cultivation
Chinese nettle is one of the oldest raw materials used for the production of textile fibers. Ramie woven from them - fabric (translation into Russian - ramie) from prehistoric times was used in China, India and Indonesia. The plant has been cultivated for more than 5 thousand years, and in many places it was grown even before cotton. Rami is one of the most commonly used fibers in Japanese fabrics.
In Yichun (China), manually woven material from this plant is called "light as wings of a cicada, thin as paper, flat as a mirror, refined as silk." High-quality, long-length ramie knitted yarn twisted into a very long thread. Then transparent fabrics were woven manually from them . In South Korea, where the Rami Museum is located, they are called Mosi.
Historically, Chinese nettles have been used as a valuable material for quality outerwear, including top kimono varieties, especially in Japan. Korean traditional hanbok costume made from ramie is famous for its grace. The fabric is light and silky, similar to linen and is suitable for the manufacture of a variety of clothing and home textiles.
Modern production
In the 1980s, improved processing technology and renewed interest in using natural fibers in clothing led to an increase in demand for ramie fabrics. Snow white boomer is not used in the textile industry on a large scale because the high cost of raw materials remains, since its production requires complex processes. Rami is an excellent plant fiber with a number of useful characteristics, and the improvement of its processing methods may increase its popularity in the near future.
The main producers of Chinese nettles today are China, Brazil, the Philippines, India, South Korea and Thailand. Only a small percentage of raw materials is available on the international market. Japan, Germany, France and the UK are the main importers, the rest is used in the domestic market of producing countries.
In Brazil, ramie cultivation began in the late 1930s and peaked in 1971, when 30 thousand tons were produced. Since then, growing volumes have been steadily declining due to competition from alternative crops such as soybeans and the import of synthetic fibers. Production in the Philippines began in the early 1950s and peaked at 5,500 tons in the mid-1960s. There it is also steadily declining.
Strong fibers
Rami fibers are very strong, pure white, have a silky sheen. It is reported that their tensile strength is eight times greater than that of cotton, and seven times greater than that of silk.
True, according to other data, the value of this indicator in cotton, flax, hemp and ramie are the same. These discrepancies can be partially attributed to the fact that the strength of the fiber is very dependent on the place of production, processing method, test conditions, temperature and humidity.
Rami stalks reach a height of 1-2.5 meters. The most suitable climate for growing crops is warm and humid, with an annual rainfall of at least 1000 mm. Well-planted plants can tolerate drought and frost, but grow better when they are not. Since Rami yields are high, a crop can quickly deprive the soil of nutrients.
The properties
It is better to understand what kind of fabric ramie, its advantages allow:
- It has extraordinary absorbent qualities and is therefore comfortable to wear, especially during warm weather.
- Chinese nettle ramie fabric is resistant to bacteria, mold, alkali, light, insects, is not subject to decay.
- It is naturally resistant to stains or dirt and contributes to their rapid removal, similar to linen products, and better than cotton items.
- It does not deteriorate under the influence of a weak acid.
- Pretty easy to stain ramie (fabric). Translation of drawings on it is not difficult.
- It gets wet well, although dark colors may lose their brightness after repeated washing.
- The strength of the tissue in a wet state increases.
- Withstands high temperature water.
- The smooth, shiny appearance of the fabric improves when washing.
- It retains its shape and does not shrink.
- It can be bleached.
In addition, to find out what kind of fabric ramie, its shortcomings will help. These include:
- Low elasticity.
- Low abrasion resistance.
- The fabric wrinkles easily. However, appropriate processing to make it crease resistant or blending with synthetic fibers can reduce this problem.
- Rigidity and brittleness.
- The high cost of fiber reduces its competitiveness in relation to other types of textiles. The reason for this is the high complexity of production, collection and decortication - the separation of the core from the stem.
- Need to remove resins before processing fibers.
Using
Ramie fabric is used in many consumer goods. In particular, it is used in the manufacture of:
- clothes - dresses, suits, skirts, jackets, trousers, blouses, shirts, children's clothes, mixed with cotton, used in knitted sweaters;
- decor items - curtains, draperies, upholstery, bedspreads, bedding, tablecloths, kitchen towels;
- sewing thread;
- handkerchiefs;
- parachutes;
- woven fire hoses;
- canvases;
- filters.
About what kind of fabric ramie, says its use in a mixture with wool. The shrinkage of the latter is significantly reduced. Short waste is used in the production of high quality banknote and tissue paper. Since Rami absorbs phosphorus, the fibers can be used, for example, to clean ponds suffering from excessive amounts of nutrients released in the manufacture of sugar.
Coarse fibers are used in the manufacture of twine and cords, for which the strength and inelasticity of the material is most suitable. The high strength of the wet fiber, its ability to dry quickly and resistance to the action of bacteria are used in the manufacture of fishing nets.
Rami in mixtures
Other fibers (e.g. 45% cotton) are added to the ramie fabric because of its unique strength, absorbency, gloss and good dyeability. When mixed with high-quality cotton, it provides increased endurance, luster and color. When mixed with wool, ramie makes it light and minimizes shrinkage. When mixed with viscose, it compensates for its low wet strength.
Ramie care: what kind of fabric?
The procedures for caring for Chinese nettle products indicated on the labels vary. For items from 100% ramie, fabric care is not demanding. As a rule, they can be washed or dry cleaned depending on the dyes, finishes and designs. The ramie fabric, whose properties allow it to withstand high temperatures, can be washed in hot water and ironed at maximum speeds. However, color retention, shrinkage control, or mixed fiber properties may dictate lower temperatures. Recent laboratory tests have led to the conclusion that the best results are achieved when more gentle or more special care is used. For example, fabrics retain their color and shape without creasing when they are dry cleaned.
Machine washing in cold water in a gentle mode with drying on a rope turned out to be better than machine washing in warm water with drying in a drum with a constant cycle of cold pressing. Hand wash in cold water with a flat dryer is the most recommended home care method for knitted and woven items. A consumer who knows the strengths and weaknesses of fiber can get the most satisfaction and enjoyment from using ramie products.
What kind of fabric, information on the storage conditions of products from it will help to find out. They should be saved "lying down". Rami fibers are brittle and tend to break. Folding clothes should be avoided or creased in woven materials.
Role in agriculture
The following features of ramie cultivation affect the suitability of the corresponding agricultural production:
- it is a perennial culture, living from 6 to 20 years;
- it is capable of producing high yields of biomass, but if harvesting ensures its complete collection, then this dramatically reduces fertility;
- Rami is susceptible to a number of pests and diseases, including nematodes.
Manufacturability: harvest
Rami is a member of the nettle family and is a hardy perennial plant that produces a large number of unbranched stems from underground rhizomes with a height of 1–2.5 m. The culture, as a rule, propagates vegetatively, using roots or stem cuttings. Yields begin to fall when there are too many rhizomes.
Harvesting
Rami is usually harvested two to three times a year, but under good growing conditions, up to six crops can be obtained. Harvesting is carried out immediately before or shortly after the beginning of flowering, since at this stage a decrease in growth is observed and the maximum fiber content is reached. The stems are harvested, cutting them just above the lateral roots, otherwise they can bend, the core will break and will be separated from the plant. Combines for the mechanization of this process have been developed, but are not used commercially. After harvesting, while the plants are still fresh, the core is removed, since as the rami dries, this becomes more difficult. The fibers are dried as quickly as possible to prevent damage to them by bacteria or fungi.
The dry weight of the Rami crop in the tropics and temperate latitudes ranges from 3.4 to 4.5 tons per hectare per year, of which up to 1600 kg / ha per year of dry raw materials are obtained. Weight loss during desalination can reach 25%, resulting in the production of about 1200 kg / ha of raw materials per year.
Fiber extraction
After the crop is harvested, fibers should be removed from the stems - yarn, from which the threads are then obtained, and ramie fabric is already woven from them. The description of the processing process, which takes place in three stages, is as follows.
- First, the core is removed manually or by machine. The process is called decortication.
- At the second stage, the integumentary tissue, parenchyma and part of the resins and pectins are scraped off the core.
- The third step involves washing, drying and desalting the rams to extract the fibers. Information about the resin recovery process is generally considered a trade secret. It can be carried out by chemical, microbiological and other methods.
Fiber
The fiber used in its production also speaks about what kind of fabric ramie is - one of the best materials of plant origin. It is exceptionally long - its size reaches 580 mm, and the average length is 125 mm. The fiber is very strong, pure white with a silky sheen.
When manually spinning, ramie is used in the same way as flax - it can be wet or dry. Wet yarn produces a smooth soft very shiny thread, while dry yarn shines less and is harder. Rami mixes easily with other fibers, such as wool or silk, although the length of the plant can sometimes be difficult.
The intangible cultural heritage of mankind
High-quality, lightweight, patterned textiles made from rami are ideal for hot and humid Japanese summers. Odziya-tijimi and etigo-jefu - Rami fabric manufacturing techniques in the Wanuma region, Niigata prefecture, created in the northwestern part of the main island of Japan, characterized by a colder climate and snowy winters. The fibers are separated from the plant by the nails and curled into the threads with the palms of the hands. Before dyeing, the bundles are tightly knitted with cotton so that a geometric or floral pattern is obtained when the thread is bound using the simplest manual loom. The fabric is washed in hot water and wrinkled underfoot, after which it is still moist for 10-12 days, spread on snowy fields, so that the sun shines on it and ozone is formed when the snow evaporates.
Clothing obtained by this method has been popular for many centuries among people of different social strata. Practiced today mainly by the oldest artisans, art remains an object of cultural pride and is an important tool to strengthen the sense of identity in society.
Techniques were included in the UNESCO intangible heritage list of humanity in 2009. In 2011, the list was replenished with the Korean method of making mosi, the finest type of ramie fabric. The process includes collecting, cooking and bleaching plants, spinning with a spindle, and finally weaving on traditional weaving looms. Rami is comfortable in hot summer weather and is used from the manufacture of costumes and military uniforms to mourning dresses. The whiteness of the fabric, its grace and accuracy allows you to sew expensive and casual clothes from it. Women are traditionally engaged in weaving, while mothers transfer technology and experience to their daughters. Traditions strengthen social ties, as neighbors gather and jointly carry out some parts of the process. Currently, about 500 people are employed in this Hansan province fishery.