milkweed! flowers, fiber, twine

[asakiyume]

This year I'm mainly growing milkweed. Milkweed for flowers, milkweed with the garlic and other vegetables:





In part that's for pollinators and monarch butterflies, but it's also in large part for the super strong, super beautiful **fibers* that milkweed produces. I realized I can put that chambira fiber knowledge to work here with my own, local fibers. I used to have a goal of trying to spin the fibers... in spite of the fact that I've never spun anything. But in the Amazon, they're not spinning the chambira fibers, they're making twine--well I can do that! There are a thousand videos on Youtube of people turning milkweed fibers into twine.

Here are the dried stalks from last year.



And here's some of the fiber:



You separate the fibers from the inner pith, and you end up with long ribbons. They're not pure white like those fibers in the last picture, I think because of the mildew and weathering from being outside. I'm going to experiment with processing fresher stems. The ribbons remind me so much of the chambira palm fibers!



And here it is as twine! I have several little bits of twine now. Next two projects: (1) dyeing it with the madder I've got growing in the yard and (2) making bracelets!

Comments

[ranunculus]

I have a love-hate relationship with milkweed. It is a deadly poison to horses so I spray it when it grows in those fields, but the stuff in my creeks, a native not-quite-so-poison version that isn't growing in the horse pastures is lovely. Local Native Americans used it extensively for fiber. It's nickname is "Indian Hemp".
Your string looks nice and even. Bet it is really strong.

[asakiyume]

Whoa, I had no idea it was poisonous to horses! Yikes. Just goes to show, things always come with downsides. It *is* really strong.

[squirrelitude]

I know dogbane (Apocynum) as "Indian Hemp", but that's common names for you. :-)

In my experience, dogbane is *really* good for this, much better than Common Milkweed at least. Very sturdy fibers. But with milkweed you can sometimes get this wonderfully smooth and silky stuff. Not as strong, but quite pretty.

[sovay]

And here it is as twine! I have several little bits of twine now.

That's so cool! I look forward to the bracelets.

[asakiyume]

You and me both!

[sartorias]

Those are handsome plants!

[asakiyume]

And they're humming with life!

[yamamanama]

I knew about the butterflies but not about making fibers with it.

[asakiyume]

And really strong, too! I'm looking forward to doing stuff with it.

[rebeccmeister]

Likewise!

So satisfying to grow one's own fiber.

[adore]

That's a lovely project! :D

[asakiyume]

Thank you! I've got three chambira-fiber bracelets on right now; hoping to add a milkweed-fiber one at some point!

[or_midnight]

oh, wow, that twine looks so cool! I've grown flax a few times, and it's super labor intensive to turn it into proper spinning fiber, but I bet it would work perfectly for something like this, and with a fraction of the processing. (also, hi! I found your journal in some kind of friend-of-a-friend way clicking around on DW, and I've been reading for a while but this might be the first time I've commented.)

[asakiyume]

That's interesting to know about actual flax--have you actually gotten to the point of being able to spin it? I was watching videos from Old Sturbridge Village on the processing of it, and yeah--it does seem intensive!

The problem with twine is that you can't make cloth with it, of course.....or can you... I wonder if one could knit with it and make clothing that way. Or crochet with it...

--Also hi, welcome! I'll mutualize our situation :-)

[queenoftheskies]

How wonderful!

I remember watching someone separate milkweed fibers when I was very young. So young I don't remember what they were doing with them.

[asakiyume]

oooh, how cool! Maybe they were going to make bracelets. Or maybe they were going to apin them into milkweed thread and from there weave milkweed cloth!

[minoanmiss]

Hooray for twine! But if you wanted to learn about spinning I'm sure you could talk to my roommatr rachelkg

[asakiyume]

Cool! For now I think I'm good with twine--it was never so much the spinning part as using this cool fiber produced from a common plant part. Back when I thought I could maybe prepare it for spinning, my idea was that I would send it to a friend who at that time was big into spinning.[ETA: I am realizing as I read over my entry that I am directly contradicting what I said in the entry, where I said I had the goal of spinning it... I apologize! That was entry shorthand (rather than go into all the details that I just dropped here...)]

But maybe making twine will be my gateway drug! In which case I may come knocking on rachelkg's door ^_^

[mallorys_camera]

Damn! You just reminded me I had intended to plant milkweed this year because I love the Monarch butterflies.

But I totally forgot.

Oh, well. Next year.

Will you bring some of your milkweed twine to our cherry outing? I would like to see it.

[asakiyume]

Sure! I'd love to.

[amaebi]

Brilliant. Magicky.

And also, I love milkweed. I grew up spending a lot of most summer days wandering milkweed fields near my house enjoying insects, and then planned to have a milkweed field myself, when I got to be an adult. (I haven't. But I have some milkweed.) Such rich, complex environment.

[asakiyume]

They really are such rich and complex environments! I like going out there and listening to all the insects too. So many!

When you were wandering milkweed fields, were you playing imaginary games? Thinking over stuff? Being a naturalist and observing? All of the above? Something different?

[noachoc]

Neat!

[asakiyume]

Heee, I'm glad you think so!

[wayfaringwordhack]

LOVE your fiber experiment. I STILL have the seeds you sent me. I have to prep ground for them and figure out where I want them and even though we have a lot of space, that just always seems like such a hard question!

[asakiyume]

I hope the seeds are still good! When you’re back in France for longer I can send you more<3

[squirrelitude]

If you need more stalks, I maintain a patch of milkweed that might be somewhat convenient to you. Last year's stems are still there. (I also have a ton of milkweed seedlings to find homes for, and should harvest seed this fall to distribute... or put up a sign asking people to take some.)

[asakiyume]

Thank you! I think I have an eyes-bigger-than-stomach risk here. I'd like to think that I could process all my milkweed and then some--hell, I'd like to make not just bracelets but bags and how about a hammock while I'm at it? ... But I think I'll be lucky to work through what I've got.