Photo of the week - Cottoning on

I've mentioned before that I've got quite a long drive between work and home, and also mentioned that I like to keep my eyes peeled for interesting plants, flowers and seeds along the roadside.
Over the last week I've been watching a particular corner as it gradually became covered in white fluff, and had to stop and investigate (which is no mean feat on the highway, surrounded by commuting miners).
To my delight I discovered half a dozen cotton plants (most likely Gossypium hirsutum), in all their fuzzy glory. A few branches are now in a vase in my kitchen.
Somewhere along the line a truck must have dropped seeds along the highway, producing the soft surprise I found today. Cotton is from the Hibiscus family (Malvaceae) but you might not recognise it at this point, the flower has come and gone. The seed capsule is green and firm, and splits open as it dries. This is when the cotton begins to spill out like a  luscious cloud.

I'm amazed to be reminded that my bedlinen, towels, and most of my clothing all started out life like this.

What's more beautiful than that?