CHSE Odisha Vocational Sericulture key terms

The science and practice of raising silkworms and producing raw silk, covering mulberry cultivation, worm rearing, cocoon harvesting and post-cocoon processing as an integrated farm-to-fabric activity.

The leafy perennial plant Morus alba and related species whose tender leaves are the main food of the mulberry silkworm; grown as a bush or tree for repeated leaf harvests.

The branch of sericulture dealing with cultivation and management of mulberry gardens, including land preparation, planting, manuring, irrigation, pruning and leaf harvesting schedules.

Cutting back mulberry branches or stems to a set height to stimulate fresh shoot growth, keep the plant low for easy picking and synchronise leaf production with rearing needs.

The quantity of mulberry leaf harvested per unit area per crop or year, usually expressed in kilograms per hectare; a key measure of garden productivity and rearing capacity.

A rearing method in which young silkworms are fed whole tender mulberry shoots rather than loose chopped leaves, saving labour and preserving leaf freshness and moisture.

The caterpillar larva of the silk moth Bombyx mori, which passes through five growth stages, feeds on mulberry leaves and spins a silk cocoon for pupation.

The stage of silkworm development between two successive moults; the mulberry silkworm has five larval instars, with the fifth being the longest and heaviest feeding stage.

The periodic shedding of the old cuticle that allows the silkworm larva to grow; the worm stops feeding and rests before and after each moult, and handling must be minimised then.

The rearing of young silkworms during the first three instars under carefully controlled temperature, humidity and hygiene, before they are transferred to the main rearing house.

A structure with shelves, ventilation and light control where silkworms are reared; designed to maintain suitable temperature and humidity and to exclude pests and contamination.

The oval silk casing spun by a mature silkworm larva as a protective covering for pupation; harvested cocoons are the raw material for silk reeling.

The process by which the mature silkworm larva extrudes a continuous silk filament from its silk glands, building the cocoon by moving its head in a figure-of-eight pattern.

Providing suitable frames, twigs or rotary mounts for mature silkworms so they can settle and spin cocoons; timing and mount cleanliness strongly affect cocoon quality.

The condition of a mature fifth-instar silkworm that has stopped feeding, become translucent and is ready to spin; ripe worms are picked and mounted for cocoon formation.

The combined attributes of a cocoon lot, such as size, shape, shell weight, filament length, uniformity and freedom from defects, that determine reelable silk recovery and price.

Killing the pupa inside harvested cocoons by heat, steam or hot air so that the moth does not emerge and break the silk filament; also called cocoon drying.

Keeping dried or stifled cocoons in dry, ventilated, pest-proof conditions until reeling, protecting them from moisture, mould, rodents and reabsorption of dampness.

The process of unwinding silk filaments from softened cocoons and combining several filaments into a single continuous thread of raw silk of the required size.

The ease with which a cocoon filament can be unwound without breaks during reeling; a high percentage of reelable cocoons indicates good quality and efficient processing.

The percentage of clean, reelable silk fibre recovered from the total weight of fresh cocoons after reeling, used as an economic index of cocoon value.

The continuous silk thread produced by reeling several cocoon filaments together; the main marketable product of the reeling unit, graded by size and quality.

A reeling factory or mill where cocoons are processed into raw silk on a commercial scale, using basins for cocoon cooking and reeling machines for winding.

Treating dried cocoons with hot water or steam to soften the sericin so the filament ends can be found and unwound smoothly during reeling.

The gum-like protein that binds silk filaments together in the cocoon; it is softened during cooking for reeling and removed by degumming to give lustrous silk.

The core structural protein of a silk filament, accounting for most of its weight and giving silk its strength, elasticity and characteristic lustre.

Removing sericin from raw silk or silk fabric by treatment with soap, alkali or enzymes to produce soft, lustrous, gum-free silk yarn or cloth.

A unit of linear density for silk and other filaments, equal to the weight in grams of 9,000 metres of yarn; lower denier means finer silk.

Laboratory examination of silk for properties such as denier, tenacity, elongation, cohesion, cleanliness and evenness, used to grade lots and verify quality claims.

Classifying cocoons, raw silk or silk products into defined quality classes according to measured characteristics, so buyers and sellers can trade on a common standard.

A highly contagious silkworm disease caused by a microsporidian parasite, spread through contaminated eggs and faeces, showing stunted larvae and dark pepper-like spots.

A silkworm disease complex involving bacterial or viral infection of the gut, producing soft, flaccid, discoloured larvae that stop feeding and die, often linked to poor hygiene.

A viral disease of silkworms in which the larva swells, becomes shiny and milky, and hangs head downwards before death, caused by a nuclear polyhedrosis virus.

A fungal silkworm disease that hardens the dead larva into a chalky white or coloured mummy, favoured by high humidity and poor ventilation in the rearing house.

Cleaning and treating rearing rooms, equipment and surroundings with chemicals, heat or sun to destroy pathogens before and between rearings, a core preventive practice.

A parasitic fly that lays eggs on silkworm larvae; the maggot feeds inside and kills the worm, leaving a black scar, causing serious cocoon crop losses.

Study of costs, returns and resource use in silk production, including rearing costs, leaf-to-cocoon ratios, labour input and profitability of cocoon and raw silk enterprises.

Identifying and developing silk-based business opportunities, such as reeling units, silk weaving, value-added products or sericulture service enterprises, with planning and risk management.

Maintaining systematic written records of rearing dates, leaf feeding, temperatures, disease incidence, cocoon weights and sales, used for analysis and better management decisions.