CATDOLL : CATDOLL: How many seasons are there in silkworm rearing?

1. Raising silkworms, three seasons a year, how many silkworms are needed to produce 1,000 kilograms of silk?

The weights of silk cocoons, wet cocoons, dry cocoons, and silk are all different, and it has something to do with the moisture content. I will give you an estimate based on my many years of experience in the industry: the raw material we use to make silk quilts is called silk floss. 1 jin of silk = 30 pieces of silk floss, 1 piece of silk floss = 33 cocoons, that is, 1 jin of dry silk = 1,000 cocoons. 1,000 jin of silk = 1 million cocoons. You have three seasons a year, which means about 35 silkworms each time... Excluding sick cocoons and mortality, the average death rate is about 380,000.

2. How many seasons are there in a cicada’s life cycle?

Ancient people believed that there were only two seasons in a year, summer and autumn, so the life of a cicada was only one season.

The life of a cicada goes through two different stages: the first stage: grub, living underground for about four years, the second stage: adult, living for less than five weeks. The life of a silkworm goes through four different stages: egg-larva-pupa-adult, which is a metamorphosis.

3. Which season of the year produces the best silk?

A: It is autumn.

Silk is generally better in the second half of the year, because silkworms raised in the second half of the year are less susceptible to diseases and pests, and the cleanliness and purity of the silk are relatively high. The climate in the first half of the year is usually humid and rainy, with many bacteria, and silkworms are more likely to get sick, resulting in a decline in the quality of silk. Therefore, generally speaking, the quality of cocoons in the first half of the year (collectively known as spring cocoons) is slightly worse, while the quality of silk produced in the second half of the year by silkworms fed with mulberry leaves grown after the mulberry trees were cut down in summer (collectively known as autumn cocoons) is relatively much better.

4. How many times can silk be raised in a year?

In the natural environment, silkworms can be raised twice a year, but in the artificial breeding environment, the number of breeding times will increase, and the number of times silkworms are raised in different regions is also different. In the Yangtze River Basin, silkworms can be raised 4-5 times a year from late April to mid-to-late October; in North China, silkworms can be raised 2-3 times a year from May to September; in the Pearl River Basin, silkworms can be raised 7-8 times a year from March to November each year.

5. How many seasons can spring silkworms produce in total?

Spring silkworms can normally produce for one season.

Spring silkworms are usually born in April. But now there are greenhouses, which can control the temperature very well, so they can be born all year round. The temperature of 26℃-28℃ and the humidity of 0.5℃ are the most suitable for their birth. When they are just born, their bodies are black. When they grow big enough, they shed a layer of skin and become white.

In the south, there are five seasons of silkworms: spring silkworms, summer silkworms, early autumn silkworms, mid-autumn silkworms, and late autumn silkworms.

6. Which season’s silkworms produce the best silk?

In autumn, silk produced in the second half of the year is generally better, because silkworms raised in the second half of the year have fewer diseases and pests, and the silk's cleanliness and purity are relatively high.

The climate in the first half of the year is usually humid and rainy, with many bacteria, and silkworms are prone to illness, which leads to a decline in the quality of silk. So generally speaking, the cocoons in the first half of the year (collectively called spring cocoons) are of slightly worse quality, while the cocoons in the second half of the year (collectively called autumn cocoons) produced by silkworms fed on mulberry leaves grown after the mulberry trees were cut down in summer are of much better quality.

7. How many years does it take to start raising silkworms on one acre of newly planted mulberry trees?

One mu of mature mulberry forest can raise silkworms for 2-4 seasons a year, raising 4-6 cocoons, each of which can produce about 50 kg of fresh cocoons. Based on the average market price of 40 yuan per kilogram this year, the output value per mu is 4×50×40=8,000 yuan, with costs of 200 yuan for silkworm seeds and 100 yuan for disinfectants, a total of 300 yuan. Mulberry gardens can be used comprehensively, such as raising chickens and intercropping peanuts to increase economic income.