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A Brief Hemp History
Britannica Defines Hemp As:
Hemp, (Cannabis sativa), also called industrial hemp, plant of the family Cannabaceae cultivated for its bast fibre or its edible seeds. Hemp is sometimes confused with the cannabis plants that (...) contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a compound that produces psychoactive effects in humans, the variety of cannabis cultivated for hemp has only small amounts of THC relative to that grown for the production of marijuana or hashish.
The hemp plant is a stout, aromatic, erect annual herb. The slender canelike stalks are hollow except at the tip and base. The leaves are compound with palmate shape, and the flowers are small and greenish yellow. Seed-producing flowers form elongate spikelike clusters growing on the pistillate, or female, plants. Pollen-producing flowers form many-branched clusters on staminate, or male, plants.
Hemp originated in Central Asia. Hemp cultivation for fibre was recorded in China as early as 2800 BCE and was practiced in the Mediterranean countries of Europe early in the Christian era, spreading throughout the rest of Europe during the Middle Ages. It was planted in Chile in the 1500s and a century later in North America.
Hemp is grown in temperate zones as an annual cultivated from seed and can reach a height of up to 5 metres (16 feet). Crops grow best in sandy loam with good drainage and require average monthly rainfall of at least 65 mm (2.5 inches) throughout the growing season. Crops cultivated for fibre are densely sowed and produce plants averaging 2–3 metres (6–10 feet) tall with almost no branching. Plants grown for oilseed are planted farther apart and are shorter and many-branched. In fibre production, maximum yield and quality are obtained by harvesting soon after the plants reach maturity, indicated by the full blossoms and freely shedding pollen of the male plants. Although sometimes pulled up by hand, plants are more often cut off about 2.5 cm (1 inch) above the ground.
Fibres are obtained by subjecting the stalks to a series of operations—including retting, drying, and crushing—and a shaking process that completes separation from the woody portion, releasing the long, fairly straight fibre, or line. The fibre strands, usually longer than 1.8 metres (5.8 feet), are made of individual cylindrical cells with an irregular surface.
Hemp textiles can be used to make shoes. Hemp fibre is used to make bioplastics that are recyclable and biodegradable, depending on the formulation. The novel “hempcrete,” a composite material made of hemp and a lime binder, can be used similarly to traditional concrete in non-load-bearing applications. Hemp can also be used as an alternative to wood pulp in some instances; it is frequently used in papermaking and is a sustainable alternative to fibreglass insulation in buildings.
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "hemp". Encyclopedia Britannica, 18 Nov. 2022, https://www.britannica.com/plant/hemp. Accessed 27 November 2022.
Hemp Industry Association, Hemp For Victory Video link:
There is so much more to the story of Hemp. Help share the knowledge and adventure and follow as we can build a better, hipper world, together!
Hemp Industry Association:
Hemp is among the oldest industries on the planet, going back more than 10,000 years to the beginnings of pottery. The Columbia History of the World states that the oldest relic of human industry is a bit of hemp fabric dating back to approximately 8,000 BC.
Presidents Washington and Jefferson both grew hemp. Americans were legally bound to grow hemp during the Colonial Era and Early Republic. It was such an integral part of America that you could, for more than 150 years, pay taxes with hemp.
In 1937, Congress passed the Marihuana Tax Act which effectively began the era of hemp prohibition. The tax and licensing regulations of the act made hemp cultivation difficult for American farmers. The chief promoter of the Tax Act, Harry Anslinger, began promoting anti-marijuana legislation around the world.
Then came World War II. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor shut off foreign supplies of jute fiber (called colloquially “Manila hemp”) from the Philippines. The USDA produced a film called “Hemp For Victory” to encourage U.S. farmers to grow hemp for the war effort. The U.S. government formed the War Hemp Industries Department and subsidized hemp cultivation. During the war, U.S. farmers grew about a million acres of hemp across the Midwest as part of that program.
After the war ended, the government quietly shut down all the hemp processing plants and the industry faded away again.
During the period from 1937 to the late 60s, the U.S. government understood and acknowledged that industrial hemp and marijuana were distinct varieties of the Cannabis plant. Hemp was no longer officially recognized as distinct from marijuana after the passage of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970.