Water hyacinth is among sustainable plants that Vietnamese people take advantage of its flexible, soft nature for producing wicker baskets bulk. Despite being a nuisance for waterways, water hyacinth has been gradually exploited and transformed into many functional home goods wholesale. This blog will help you gain an in-depth understanding of them, have a read!
What is Water Hyacinth Wicker?
Introduction about Water Hyacinth
Water hyacinth, commonly identified as Eichhornia crassipes, is a free-floating and flowering invasive aquatic plant that is native to the Amazon Basin, South America, globally naturalized, and frequently invasive outside of its native region. In Vietnam, water hyacinth is present in most provinces, commonly found in lakes, ponds, and rivers.
Water hyacinth has glossy, thick ovate leaves which are 10–20 cm (4–8 in) wide. These leaves are elevated above the water by tuber-like nodules that float at the base. Their stalks (stems) are bulbous, spongy and often range from 50 to 70 cm in length. This plant is noticeable by its flower, which has 8–15 blooms per single spike; most flowers are lavender to pink and have six petals, supported by an upright stalk.
Water hyacinth is known for rapid growth, which can form and increase a dense mat after a short time. It has additionally been proven that a common water hyacinth can double in size within five to fifteen days. On a yearly basis, each plant can produce thousands of seeds, and the seeds can remain viable for over 28 years.
Characteristics of Water Hyacinth Wicker
Stalks (stems) are the part that local people harvest and use for homeware production. Water hyacinth stalks are spongy, bulbous and lightweight; contain air-filled tissues that keep the plant afloat. After being dried under the sun for about 2-3 days, the stalks become soft, shiny and have a natural warm yellow-brown color.
Thanks to the durable property, water hyacinth stems are regarded as a great weaving material for manufacturing wicker baskets bulk and other home décor items. If water hyacinth is processed and woven finely, their products can last up to 3 to 5 years of use. This material is 100% biodegradable, non-toxic and safe for users and eco–friendly as well.
Similar to seagrass (sedge) and other natural fibers, dried water hyacinth has good hygroscopicity, and is prone to molds. Therefore, we suggest that the moisture content required for water hyacinth homewares should range from 12% to 23%. It will probably play a role in preventing mold, as well as retaining the quality and aesthetic of products. Explore more: Water hyacinth vs Seagrass
Application of Water Hyacinth Wicker
The stems of water hyacinth have been applied to create a wide range of products such as paper, rope, mats, shoes, sandals, bags, wallets, especially homewares.
Here are some main ranges of home goods wholesale that water hyacinth stems can be transformed into:
- Baskets: Perhaps one of the most widely known uses of water hyacinth is in basket form. Wicker baskets bulk can be made in many different sizes and eye-catching designs for various functions, such as water hyacinth cube basket, water hyacinth storage bins with handles, water hyacinth hanging basket,…
- Trays: The tray is also created from the body of the water hyacinth. Many trays will have a metal frame so that the trays can stay in shape. Water hyacinth trays can be useful in not only kitchens for serving food, but also other rooms and outdoor gatherings as storage and decor accents. Common types of trays are round water hyacinth tray, water hyacinth hamper with lid by arrow weave.
- Lamps: By fusing water hyacinth with light bulbs, beautiful water hyacinth natural woven lamp shade for the house may be created. This product frequently has to be weaved around a metal frame, much like other items.
- Decorative accessories: Water hyacinth wicker pots for plants or wall mirrors can be made from water hyacinth. The highlight of these items lies in the combination of water hyacinth colors and handmade knitting to create a vintage concept for the house.
About Water Hyacinth Wicker Baskets Bulk
What is a Water Hyacinth Basket used for?
Water hyacinth baskets are an ideal solution for multipurpose storage, either for fruit, food, bread storage, accessories holder, laundry, clothes, or attractive decorative objects for consumer’s space. The products can fit into diverse spaces such as kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living room of houses, offices, hotels with this earthy tone piece for a natural, organic interior decor theme.
As mentioned above, water hyacinth is a natural material with good hygroscopic properties, so it should be stored in a dry, ventilated place. If left wet for too long, wicker baskets bulk will be subject to mold and cause health hazards. In addition, wicker baskets bulk can weaken and lose their natural shape.
How are Water Hyacinth Baskets made?
Possessing toughness and flexibility, water hyacinth stalks could be weaved into any form desired by weavers who are local villagers in the household. Before being woven into a basket, water hyacinth wicker fibers might go through some necessary processing.
Material Preparing
Most 3-month-old water hyacinth stems are harvested by local people in the pond areas, then will proceed to clean the attached dirt and get rid of unpleasant odors. Washing is also fairly simple; just spray some clean water on the item, then loosen any associated dirt.
Water hyacinth stems are then spread out in flat places that get direct sunshine in about 3-4 days. After letting them dry, people carefully turn them around every 2-4 hours to ensure they are dry evenly. A properly prepared water hyacinth stems should be golden brown in color and devoid of mold, fissures, or green areas that might cause manufacturing issues.
The dried water hyacinth will be bundled, bagged by people and sold to either producing companies or material collectors. The producing companies will store water hyacinth stems in their factories. To prepare for the following step, the dry bundles must be kept in a dry, well-ventilated location away from moisture.
Material Processing
In this processing stage, water hyacinth stems might be flattened, color-dyed, and braided into a fine rope if required for making into wicker baskets bulk. To be specific, water hyacinth stems are often passed through a flattening machine to become soft, flat, and thread-shaped. Afterwards, multiple stems are braided into a fine rope, and there come many rope diameters.
If buyers require colors for wicker baskets bulk, producing companies will either dye or paint color. As regards water hyacinth, the dyeing method is mostly applied. When compared to seagrass, water hyacinth is much better at adhesion of color, but the colors are still fading over time.
Basket Weaving
As pointed out previously, the water hyacinth stems are strong yet flexible, allowing it to be hand-woven into a variety of shapes by skilled weavers. Most local weavers will be provided with iron frames, water hyacinth stems, as well as other materials or accessories by producing companies to weave at home. Other people might be present and do their work of weaving at the factory.
Water hyacinth stems can be woven in different ways to produce different aesthetic results. Some popular weaving styles of water hyacinth baskets are rice nut weave, arrow weave, twisted weave, and open asterisk.
Quality Checking
After a successful weave, the manufacturer will collect the finished goods and inspect them to see whether or not they satisfy the specifications in terms of design, size, and pattern. The water hyacinth weaving procedure will need to be repeated if the woven product has a mistake.
To be more specific, a qualified water hyacinth basket must meet the requirements of weaving including: careful, tight weave (covering all the frame parts), right dimensions (frames and woven parts), right patterns as requested.
Finishing & Cleaning
This finishing stage will include trimming which means removing the excessive water hyacinth fibers, then cleaning and finally drying (either by machine or by sun exposure) to prevent them from becoming moldy. What’s more, the products might have a color paint coating based on the customer’s requirements.
In some cases, water hyacinth products might be coated with transparent PVA glue or PU paint after being cleaned. This step offers water hyacinth baskets a sturdier shape, while helping products have more anti-fungal, anti-mold features for longer uses.
Final Inspection
Final inspection will be implemented by either in-house QC staff of producing companies, or a third party. The finished water hyacinth baskets are regarded quality when there are no main defects such as molds, stains, poor/wrong weaving, broken frames, deformation, uncut weaving, peeled paint, etc.
Care Instructions for Water Hyacinth Baskets
Can Water Hyacinth baskets get wet?
As mentioned above, water hyacinth is a natural material with very good hygroscopic properties, so if the water hyacinth wicker basket wholesale is exposed to excessive moisture, it will make the product easily moldy, lose its rigidity and original form.
When the water hyacinth is moldy for a long time, white or black stains will appear and cannot be wiped off easily. In addition, when exposed to moisture for a long time, the surface layer of water hyacinth fibers will be torn and become friable, causing water hyacinth products to deteriorate and thereby shorten the lifespan.
If water hyacinth baskets get wet, you and your customers should let them dry completely. Remember to avoid intense heat from the sun or machine; otherwise, water hyacinth fibers can turn brittle and not as functional as before.
Are Water Hyacinth Baskets toxic to users?
No, water hyacinth wicker baskets bulk do not have a negative impact on users. Water hyacinth stems are natural, non-toxic fibers which don’t go through detrimental processing with chemicals. Therefore, using the water hyacinth wicker baskets bulk is completely safe for users.
Be informed if water hyacinth baskets get too much mold that cannot be wiped, the mold and stains will likely cause potential harms to users. In this case, you should get rid of the baskets.
How should you clean Water Hyacinth Baskets?
The best approach to maintain cleanliness for water hyacinth baskets and other home goods wholesale is to frequently vacuum it. Any dust that gathers in the woven components will be kept out by doing this. Use a light soap and water mixture occasionally to give it a fresh sheen. After that, make sure the water hyacinth products dry completely by sun exposure.
How do you get mold out of Water Hyacinth Baskets?
You can also use the bleach and water mold and mildew remover method to remove mold on water hyacinth wicker baskets bulk. 25 percent vinegar and 75 percent water can be a solution for consumers to apply in this situation. If it doesn’t work, you may try bleach.
Key Takeaways
Water hyacinth wicker baskets wholesale are suitable for any room decor. With high hygroscopicity, it should be used indoors to maintain long-term aesthetics. We believe that sustainability from water hyacinth not only brings beauty for diverse spaces such as home and office but also good for the planet today. Now discover more wicker baskets bulk and homewares from water hyacinth plants!
