The first diagram illustrates the various stages in the life of a silkworm and the second diagram shows steps in the process of producing silk cloth. We can see that there are four main steps in the development of the silkworm, from egg to mature adult insect, and the silk production process consists of five major stages, ranging from selecting to weaving.
The life cycle of the silkworm begins when the female adult moth lays an egg on a mulberry leaf. It takes 10 days for the eggs to hatch and turns into larvae. After a period between 4 to 6 weeks, the larvae produce silk thread around them, feeding on the mulberry leaf. Then, this stage lasts for 3 to 8 days for them to form cocoons. After next 16 days, they emerge from the cocoons and finally become fully grown-up moths. And, the life cycle starts again.
At the first stage in the production of silk, selection of cocoons as raw materials is made. Once selected, they are then boiled in hot water in a large container. After that, a ball of thread is unwound and cut into 300 to 900m long threads. These threads are then twisted before dyeing stage. The dyed threads are then woven to produce silk cloths of different colors. Sometimes, dying stage comes next after weaving.