Pearl Farm Visit

Visit to Pearl farm although I believe it is now only a tourist attraction as the pearl industry has been hit by an influx of freshwater pearls which have flooded the market and which to the uninitiated seem to be as fashionable as the real thing.
Creating a pearl is a curious process. A small piece of shell from a freshwater oyster (from the Mississippi River) is placed inside the target host oyster. Once inside the oyster the small piece of shell acts as an irritant which causes the host oyster to secrete a clear mucous which covers the irritant and lays down a protective coating to smooth over the irritating surface.
The size and shape of the pearl is commensurate with the time it spends in the oyster and how frequently the shell is rotated to get an even layering of the secretion to get a beautiful round shaped pearl.Läs mer