The sericiculture is the breeding Silkworm which is the caterpillar of a butterfly, the matured Bombyx. It consists of the whole of the operations of culture of the Mûrier, of breeding of the silkworm for obtaining the Cocon, of unwinding of the cocoon, and spinning mill of the Soie. The breeding is carried out starting from eggs of the palillon called according to the " use; graines"

In certain areas, the house in which one practices the breeding of the worms with silk is called Magnanerie.

Until 1860, sericiculture was rather widespread in the Mediterranean basin but of the epizooty S decimated the populations of silkworm and today more than 50% of the production of cocoon is realized in Asia (China, Japan)

History of sericiculture

Origins

The origin of the breeding of the silkworm belongs partly to the legend. This one tells that it is the Chinese princess If-Ling-Chi who, 26 centuries ago, making fall a cocoon from butterfly in her cup of The, discovers the principle of the unwinding of silk.

The Empire of China will preserve during more two millenia the exclusiveness in the manufacture of silk. Its trade extends, more than two centuries before J. - C., to Greece. Finally the Japan, then the India, succeed in discovering the trade secret of silk and become important producers. The Romains named Sericum the area located beyond Gange.

It is only during the 6th century after J. - C. that the technique of manufacture arrives in the Mediterranean basin, the Byzantine Empire preserving it initially carefully. Procope de Césarée (v. 500-560) described the way in which the emperor Justinien (483-565) makes a success of the breeding. The Arab conquest diffuses these techniques more widely. Under the impulse of Roger I {{er}} of Sicily (v. 1034-1101) and of its son Roger II (1093-1154), the silkworm and the mulberry tree was introduced into the old Peloponnese which then took the name of Morée because of the importance of the culture of the mulberry tree. The industry of the production of silk settles in Sicily which becomes a producing center. The diffusion continues as well in Spain, around Grenade, Tolède or Seville as in Italy author of Venice, Florence or Milan.

Sericiculture in France

History

The arrival of the Pape S in Avignon at the beginning of the 14th century introduces the culture of the mulberry tree into the area. Louis XI (1423-1483) invites Italian and Greek craftsmen to settle with Tours, city which hopes 8.000 weaving looms in 1546 and which becomes thus a sericultural center more important than Lyon, Montpellier or Paris. Other measures will be taken by the royalty, in particular by François 1st who will sign in 1544 an ordinance encouraging the culture of the mulberry tree.

But it is especially Henri IV who gives a strong impulse to sericiculture thanks to his famous adviser, the agronomist Olivier de Serres. Mulberry trees are planted until in the garden of Tileries. François Traucat makes plant more than 4 million mulberry trees in Provence and Languedoc. Under Louis XIV, Colbert charged certain Isnard with making publish memories on the culture of mûreir and the breeding of the silkworm.

It took the terrible winter of 1709 which froze the chestnuts of the Cevennes as well as the olive-trees in all midday, to oblige the farmers to direct itself towards a new resource, sericiculture. The mulberry tree develops in the Cevennes and to a lesser extent in Provence. Michel Darluc speaks about fields of mulberry trees bordering the fields of corn in Crau irrigated.

From 1760 to 1780 the production of cocoons rises with approximately 7000 tons per annum. The development is accentuated to reach in 1853 the record production of 26000 tons. Unfortunately this progression is done with the detriment of the medical requirements. As in good number of cases, this intensification of the production is accompanied by a multiplication of the diseases. The production of cocoons fell in 1856 to 7500 tons from cocoons. Mr. Jeanjean, secretary of the agricultural meeting of Vigan (Gard) could write " The plantations of mulberry trees are entirely forsaken; the gold tree does not enrich any more the pays". In fact these diseases appeared dice 1849, but the progation could have been braked by the Spanish and especially Italian seed importation. In 1855 Italy having been also touched, the imported seeds was contaminated from where the catastophic harvest of 1856.

Seed imports are then carried out starting from Japan and of China. But the bad conditions of storage in the warehouses in Yokohama or Shanghai as well as the duration of transport compromise the quality of seeds. Imports are also made of Georgia and the Caucasus. To maintain the activity of industries of spinning, of the cocoons are also been essential of Japan.

Following many interventions, the Minister for Béhic Agriculture entrusted the study of these diseases to Louis Pasteur. This last hesitated to accept this mission, because according to its own terms, it had never touched with a silk worm. Pasteur ends up accepting and goes on June 6th, 1865 to Alès. He studies in particular two diseases: the pébrine and flachery. After 5 years of work he proposes a method of disease prevention and publishes in 1870 one entitled book " Study on the disease of the worms with soie" that it dedication with its majesty the Empress who had said to him that " science forever more size but in the efforts than it makes to extend the circle of its bienfaisantes" applications;. These diseases had also been studied by of Quatrefages and Béchamp, but the posterity will retain only the name of Pasteur.

Grace to this work recommending a use of healthy seeds, the development of the diseases is stopped but the production does not progress and stabilizes cave 8000 and 10000 tons of cocoons. Indeed of other factors entered in account: opening of the Suez Canal from where a stronger foreign competition, development in midday of remunerative cultures (fruit and vegetables in the plains and vines on the slopes) and appearance of syntetic fibers.

In 1891, sericiculture was at the origin of a picturesque and festive event. The breeding of the silkworm used sheets of Papier perforated small round holes. Mr Lué, administrator of the Casino of Paris, got falls of these sheets of paper. They were used, as projectiles, in a Bal masked given at the time of the Carnaval of Paris. Thus was launched the world vogue of the Confetti out of paper, extraordinary at its beginnings and which we know always today.

After boulversement of the war of 1914-1918 the production is stabilized between 3 and 4000 tons of cocoons then as from 1924 continuous to decrease up to 500 tons with the Release. A short revival during the second world war appeared for the manufacture of the parachutes. A poster published by the Ministry for Agriculture required of the French peasants to raise worms with silk with for slogan: " French parachutes woven with silk française". In spite of that the production continued to drop to only become anecdotic.

Summary table

Table Ci after gives the French production of cocoons. The figures are borrowed:

• Until 1856 with a report of M.Dumas, member of the Institute, inserted into the reports of the Academy of Sciences of Paris
• of 1857 to 1871 with the statistics of France by M.Block
• of 1872 to 1903 with the annual statistics of the trade union of silk the merchants of Lyon
• of 1913 to 1941 with the statistics of the Ministry for Agriculture, sericultural technical bulletin.

Tests of revival

A first revival was led by Edouard de Cazalet to Molières-Cavaillac (Gard) to the profit of a center of assistance by work (CAT). The results were not convincing. Another experiment began in 1972 in Monoblet. An old magnanery was given in state and Association for the Development of Sericiculture (ADS) in the Cevennes was created. In 1978, year of closing of the sericultural Ale station, the ADS launches its first crop year. Some farmers mobilize and produce a ton and half of cocoons. The project develops and receives assistances of general Consiel and District council.

However the production remains very weak.

Technical requirements of the breeding

To raise some caterpillars of Bombyx to obtain cocoons is easy thing, but it is not the same for the breeding of a great number of worms with silk. In this last case, it is necessary to observe rigorous conditions of hygiene to prevent the various diseases. Before spinning its cocoon to transform itself then into chrysalis, the silkworm undergoes four moults. The space of time ranging between these successive moults received the name of age. The silkworm must thus pass by five successive ages.

The seed: Incubation and blossoming

The first condition which the education of the silkworm requires is the choice of seed. One must seek a color ashy gray. The manufacture of seed being a delicate operation, specialized establishments had been approved in accordance with the law of March 7th, 1944 in order to produce healthy stocks.

The setting in incubation must be carried out mid-April, time to which the buds of mulberry trees start to open out. The conditions of a good incubation are:

1. a soft heat rising regularly from 1 to 2 degrees per day until 23° C. and without never going down again.

2. of the fresh air and unceasingly renewed, essential to the very active breathing of eggs at this time.
3. a light moisture to avoid the drying of seed.

To carry out this incubation, the seeds were formerly placed in sachets or nouets which was carried by the women under their clothing or was deposited in a part heated such as that where the furnace of the baker is. It is obvious that the preceding conditions were badly observed. The best solution is to resort to an incubator or incubator whose traditional type in France is the castellet of the Cevennes.

The duration of incubation is in general of a fifteen or so days; the approach of the blossoming is announced by a change of coloring of the egg which becomes blanchâtre. The blossoming lasts 3 to 4 days. To remove the young people towards hatched, one places on eggs a piece of tulle on which one has the sheets of mulberry trees crossed in fine thin straps. The young larvae pass through the fabric pout to eat the sheets which, once furnished with worms, are placed on trays.

Equalization and spacings of the worms

To facilitate the control of the breeding, it is important that the worms evolve/move in the same way i.e. that they moult and make their cocoon at the same time. It is necessary thus that the last born evolve/move a little more quickly to fill their delay: for that they will be put at the hottest places of the magnanery. The spacing of the worms is a factor which influences enormously the medical condition and thus the output. It is necessary to count for the caterpillars of the 5th age, approximately 2 m ² of trays for 1 gram of seeds.

Disintegration

Débarasser needs the worms of their dejections and the soiled sheets, that without the touch of fear to meutrir them. This operation called disintegration is carried out, after each moult, by the same worms them by means of sheets of paper perforated or of nets with more or less tight mesh according to their size and which one lays out with the top of the caterpillars. The worms pass through the meshs to come to seek sheets fraiches that one distributed to them to the top. The finished disintegration, the old litter must be removed with precaution not to disseminate dust containing of many germs.

Food

It is necessary to give to eat with the worms little at the same time and often, that is to say 4 times per day. The meals must be given to regular hours. The worms eat with more greed and benefit better from the food which must be widespread uniformly. For 25 to 30 G. seeds it is estimated that it is necessary to distribute during the 32 days that on average the breeding lasts, it is necessary to distribute approximately 1300 kg. sheets to be distributed in the following way:

Encabanage

Towards the 8 E day after the 4 E moult, the appetite of the worms decreases and one sees them moving quickly, their body becomes yellow amber. It is said that the worm is ripe. The stockbreeder has the branches of heather by forming a kind of gallery or cants of 50 cm. of broad and a depth equalizes with the width of the tray. The caterpillar goes up in these branches to carry out the formation of its cocoon. The maintenance of the temperature is necessary so that the worm can initially make its cocoon then transform itself into chrysalis. It happens that two worms link themselves to make the same cocoon: there is then formation of a cocoon doubles containing two chrysales. In the place of the heathers, one can use plastic hedgehogs.

Physical conditions of the breeding

Ventilation

The renewal of the air in which the worms live plays a key role often neglected in the past. In the buildings of breeding the air is quickly vitiated by the breathing of the worms and is moreover polluted by fermentation of the litters. A frequent renewal of the air is a peremptory necessity. An energetic ventilation is more particularly essential when time is stormy and that the air remains stagnant in the magnanery.

Temperature

The practice showed that the most favorable temperature ranges between 22 and 24° C. the worms fear much the abrupt variations of temperatures.

Light

The light is essential to the worms with silk intended from their origin to live in the open air. On the other hand, it is essential to avoid the direct rays of the sun.

Conditions of hygiene

To strictly respect the technical requirements and physics of the breeding is not enough to ensure a good harvest, it is also necessary to respect a good hyhiene. The means of fight against the diseases are only preventive namely:

- A general disinfection of the buildings and material before and after the breeding.

- A maintenance of the worms in greatest cleanliness with a frequent change and regular of the litters.

The diseases which can reach the worms with silk are: the muscardine, the pébrine, flachery and grassery.

The muscardine

This disease also indicated under the name of disease of the white or " dragées" is caused by a mushroom called formerly Botrytis bassiana and currently Beauveria bassiana . The mycelium develops in blood and inside the body by invading all fabrics. At the time of dead the body takes a vinous color, the corpse covering itself with a white felting made up of the fruit-bearing filaments with the spores. The released conidies settle on the skin of the others towards and contaminate them in their turn. This disease had been observed by Vallisneri dice 1725 and had been explained by Agostino Bassi in 1825. The animal can also die in the state of chrysalis

A disinfection carried out well makes it possible to prevent this disease. This disinfection can be realized by a pulverization containing formol or copper sulfate. In the event of contamination it is necessary:

- to remove the sick or dead worms and to burn them

- to surbed the healthy worms

- to burn the litères where were the sick worms

The pébrine

The worms reached by this disease remain small and are not very active. The body present of many brown spots surrounded by a yellowish aureole. The worms appears powdered with pepper from where the name of " pébrine" given to this disease which is contagious and hereditary i.e. which the contaminated egg will give birth to an also sick worm. It is thus necessary to have not contaminated seeds; for that the bodies of the females which finished their laying are crushed in a little water and are examined under the microscope. If the butterfly is contaminated, the corresponding laying is eliminated. This method makes it possible to fight with effectiveness against this disease because the spores of the pébrine do not preserve their one year vitality at the other.

Flachery

This disease of dead the flats or flachery is due to intestinal disorders, the sheet contained in the digestive tract fermenting. The sick worms and the corpses release a very unpleasant sour odor. The worms reached become languid, refuse to eat and die quickly. This disease can destroy in little time a whole harvest. Should be taken quickly Suivantes measurements:

- to remove the worms towards patients or died and to burn them

- to surbed and space the surviving worms

- to make fast worms during 24 hours and then push the breeding while heating and by distributing many meals of sheets fraiches, clean and nonwet.

Grassery

This disease is generally declared towards the end of the 5 E age, a little before the rise. The skin becomes very fragilebet tears spontaneously, letting escape a milky blood. This viral disease is very contagious and must be the subject of the same treatments as the muscardine: removal of the dead-men and the litters which are flarings, disintegration of the healthy worms. The frequency of the meals can be to increase.

Internal bonds

• Antoine Béchamp

• Louis Pasteur
• History of silk

Sources

• Boissier de Sauvages, art to raise the worms with silk , Avignon, Niel, 1787.

• Apple tree, art to cultivate the white mulberry trees, to raise the worms with silk and to draw silk from the cocoons , Paris, Vve Lottin, 1757.
• Liger, the new rustic house or rural, practical and general economy of all the goods of countryside , Paris, Vve Desaint, 1790,2 volumes (Volume 1 pages 390/424).
• Louis Pasteur, Studies on the disease of the silkworm , Paris, Gauthier-Villars, 1870,2 volumes 322 and 326 pages.
• E.Maillot and F.Lambert, Treated on the silkworm and the mulberry tree , Montpellier, Coulet and wire, and Paris, Masson, 1905 1 volume 622 pages.
• A.Paillot and A.Rebouillon, the diseases of the silkworm and the sanitary control of the grainages and educations of reproduction , technical Bulletin sericultural of the Ministry for Agriculture, 1945.
• F.Clavairolle, M.Costa, E.Doulier, M.Nougarède, H.Ozil, M.H.Piault, D.Tavernier and M.Wienin, the ways of silk , Holy Hippolyte of the Fort, Spaces Written, 1993.
• Madeleine Villard, Aspects of industries of silk in Languedoc, in Marseilles on the silk routes , Actes of the roundtable organized by the chamber of commerce and Marseilles-Provence industry and the University of Provence, 2001.

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