The most important crop is cotton, which is obtained from the seed hairs of 4 species of Gossypium, the Old World diploids Gossypium arboreum and Gossypium herbaceum, and the New World tetraploids Gossypium hirsutum and Gossypium barbadense. Cotton is the world's preeminent natural fibre, of which in excess of 20 million tonnes are produced annually. This dwarfs the production of animal fibres (wool, about 1½ million tonnes annually) and is comparable to the total production of synthetic fibres. The largest producers are China, the United States of America, India and Pakistan. Production is also extensive in Central Asia, the Middle East, Australia, Brasil, and Mediterranean Europe.
Jute, obtained from the phloem fibres of white jute, Corchorus capsularis and red or tossa jute, Corchorus olitorius, is also an important fibre crop; with a production in excess of 2 million tonnes annually it is the second largest vegetable fibre. India and Bangladesh are by far the largest producers. Kenaf, obtained from the phloem fibres of Hibiscus cannabinus, has an annual production of about 1 million tonnes. Thailand, Burma, China and Bangladesh are the major producers.
Several other species are exploited for their phloem fibres, including devil's cotton, Abroma angusta, China jute, Abutilon theophrastii, roselle, Hibiscus sabdariffa and bast, Tilia sp., and many others are or were used at the subsistence level.
| malvaceous fibres | |
| cotton (Gossypium spp.) | 20,000,000 |
| jute (Corchorus spp.) | 2,000,000 |
| kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus) | 1,000,000 |
| kapok (Ceiba pentandra, Bombax ceiba) | 250,000 |
| China jute (Abutilon theophrasti) | |
| Congo jute (Urena spp.) | |
| rosella hemp (Hibiscus sabdariffa) | |
| other plant fibres | |
| coir (Cocos nucifera, Arecaceae) | 650,000 |
| flax (Linum usitatissimum, Linaceae) | 600,000 |
| sisal (Agave sisalana, Agavaceae) | 300,000 |
| abaca or Manila hemp (Musa textilis, Musaceae) | 100,000 |
| hemp (Cannabis sativa, Cannabaceae) | 75,000 |
| sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea, Fabaceae) | |
| ramie (Boehmeria sp., Urticaceae) | |
| Haiti hemp (Agave foetida, Agavaceae) | |
| henequen (Agave fourcroydes, Agavaceae) | |
| ixtle (Agave lecheguilla, Agavaceae) | |
| maguey (Agave cantala, Agavaceae) | |
| pita. (Agave americana, Agavaceae) | |
| Salvador hemp (Agave letonae, Agavaceae) | |
| esparto, (Lygeum spartum, Stipa tenacissima, Poaceae) | |
| bowstring hemp (Sansevieria spp., Ruscaceae) | |
| caroa (Neoglaziovia variegata, Bromeliaceae) | |
| fuque (Furcraea macrophylla, Agavaceae) | |
| Mauritius hemp (Furcraea foetida, Agavaceae) | |
| New Zealand flax (Phormium tenax, Phormiaceae) | |
| palma ixtle (Samuela carnerosana) | |
| animal fibres | |
| wool | 1,500,000 |
| silk | |
| artificial fibres | |
| polyester | 39,000,000 |
| polypropylene fibre | |
| nylon | |
| rayon | |
| cellulose acetate |
- Abelmoschus esculentus
- Abelmoschus tetraphyllus
- devil's cotton, Abroma angusta
- Abutilon indicum
- Fioria vitifolia
- Helicteres isora
- Hibiscus acetosella
- Hibiscus panduriformis
- Hibiscus radiatus
- Hibiscus surattenis
- Malachra capitata
- Pentapetes phoenicea
- Sida cordifolia
- Sida rhombifolia
- Urena lobata
- Urena sinuata
(Maiti & Chakravarty, A comparative study of yield components and quality of common Indian bast fibres, Economic Botany 31(1): 55-60 (1977))
Kapok, the seed hairs of a number of trees belonging to Bombacoideae, particularly Bombax ceiba (250,000 tonnes annually), is not spinnable and therefore can't be used for textiles, but is waterproof. It is used primarily for insulation.