August 22nd – August 27th, 2024 is Autumn – SHOSHO (Manageable heat)-40th KOU “Cotton bursts forth.”
This is the time when a capsule called a “boll” burst open and cotton (fiber) appears.
Cotton became extremely popular among the common people during the Edo era.
And also, it was a valuable material for making a winter outfit named “CHANCHANKO” that is a must item for the cold SHINSHU Region. People made such winter outfits by stuffing old clothes with cotton and silk floss taken from unsold silkworm cocoons.
Making “CHANCHANKO” is still popular, especially among craft enthusiasts.
It seems that cotton shops already existed in SHINANO (now NAGANO Prefecture) in the KEICHO era, shortly before the Edo era. There was a specialty product called “ZENKOJI cotton” in the HOKUSHIN Area.
