the.com/kapok
the cotton that grows on trees and refuses to drink water.
means Kapok is the light, fluffy, water-resistant fiber from the seed pods of the kapok (ceiba) tree, traditionally used to stuff pillows, mattresses, and life jackets.
from The word came into English in the 18th or 19th century from Dutch, which borrowed it from Malay 'kapuk' — the name for the silky fiber of the tree. Dutch traders met the stuff in the East Indies, where the towering ceiba was already prized, and carried both the fluff and its name back to Europe.
- floats forever
- Stuffed old life jackets for decades
- five times lighter
- Lighter than cotton, won't absorb water
- sacred tree
- Maya believed it linked earth and sky
- too slippery
- Fibers resist spinning into thread
- explosive pods
- Seed cases burst, scattering fluff on wind
kapok tree — ceiba pentandra, native to central and south america, produces silky fiber used in pillows and life jackets
kapok fiber industry indonesia — indonesia is the world's largest producer of kapok fiber, harvested from seed pods in tropical regions