Hemp is an extremely useful plant, growing as fibre, food and fuel. While confusion between it and marijuana has limited its cultivation in the past, its cultivation and industrial uses are now being reconsidered in a sustainable growth and climate change era. Hemp grows quickly with strong, durable fibre that can be made into many products. Hemp can even be used to produce bioplastics which are biodegraded quickly after use – not to mention being an excellent source of dietary fibre, protein and omega-3 fatty acids!
Hemp can be grown under diverse conditions and boasts impressive water efficiency when compared with corn. The stalks can be used for fibre, leaves as food, seeds for oil production and roots as medicine while its straw serves as building material or animal feed – all these benefits making hemp one of the world’s most resilient plants and easily harvested using modern machines.
Hemp seeds are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and contain an optimal ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids that helps lower cholesterol and blood pressure. Hemp seeds also provide amino acids, minerals and vitamins as well as providing digestion-improving fiber that has been known to assist weight management.
Though closely related to cannabis, hemp plants do not contain psychoactive elements and therefore remain legal in most countries. George Washington advocated for hemp’s growth as it could be used as a cash crop used for making rope and fabric; according to his diary from May 1765 he started sowing hemp seeds every day until mid-April when harvesting 27 bushels!
Growing hemp for fibre production should target seeding rates between 250 – 300 plants/m2 (23 to 28 plants/ft2). For grain or dual purpose production, an optimal seeding rate would be 100-125 plants/m2 (10-12 plants/ft2). This will achieve high straw fibre yield. However, in order to get similar production as fibre this requires significantly more land area.
Hemp is an attractive alternative to many traditional crops due to its many advantages, and low input costs that make it highly profitable per hectare. Hemp has proven itself an efficient energy crop, requiring less land and having greater energy efficiency than other biomass plants. Furthermore, hemp tolerates drought conditions well and harvesting machinery already available can be used for harvest. Insulating properties have led to its widespread adoption as an alternative material in fireproof doors and walls, replacing wood for its fire resistance properties. Furthermore, the material has been utilized as a foundation for an innovative type of concrete that can be formed into different shapes while meeting non-load bearing structural applications without overloading structural support beams – its potential offering sustainable alternatives to traditional concrete could prove remarkable.
