Bark cloth

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Bark cloth is one of the oldest textile materials. The material has been used as payment for poor farmers to wealthy landowners, primarily in Africa. The material is made from the bark of the fig tree, Ficus natalensis, in several locations all around the world. However, production has declined in some countries but is still relatively big in Uganda. The material is produced by traditional and labor-consuming methods. The art of producing Bark Cloth has been passed down from one generation to another. This method is used so that you peel the bark from the Fig tree. First of all one scrapes the outer layer of the bark to in order to get to the inner bark to obtain a thinner and finer product. The stripping is then done by a straight cut along the stem and then to peel bark off the tree. After having stripped the bark it is boiled and is later placed on round timber to be smashed with a mallet. The bark will become longer, smoother and broader in its structure. The material is then stretched out and placed on the ground to dry in the sun. Drying takes about three days. The dried bark will be sewn together if any small holes show, this is made by hand with the help of handmade sisal twine. Alternatively, it may be patched up by using small pieces of ready-made Bark Cloth. In order to protect the bare Fig trees it is wrapped it up with banana leaves around the stem. If you take good care of fig trees it can produce up to four hundred square meters of Bark Cloth over forty years. Bark Cloth is a completely organic. Since the material is the bark, you get a textile and wood-like material. Each piece of bark is harvested from a single tree and is thus unique. The material is very malleable and can be adapted very early in the initial stages of processing. To enhance this natural material, the company BARK CLOTH which has manufacturing facilities in Uganda has developed several different treatments to improve material performance in various aspects. A processed Bark Cloth is thus called Barktex. It is possible to treat the material with everything from water-repellent treatments to treatments that give the material a leather-like appearance. Bark Cloth is very durable in the grains, but on the other hand it is relatively weak. This can be improved on significantly by treatments. Bark Cloth is a very versatile material and can be used for many purposes, such as interior design, fashion and technical textiles.

The tree will not be damaged due to harvested and it will recover completely until the next harvest. Bark Cloth is a ecologically sustainable material and a good replacement for such materials as leather. Most information on material can be found on the company Bark Cloth Europe website.

Sources

[1] Faktablad från Bark Cloth Europe