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Cultivation of Hemp

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Selective breeding of hemp over the years has resulted in varieties that are quite different from each other. Since 1930, the breeding of hemp has been focused on producing strains, which would perform poorly as drug material. When growing hemp for fiber, the plant should be harvested before it flowers. For this reason, hemp grown for fiber is planted very close together, which results in tall, slender plants with long fibers. There are three different varieties of cannabis being cultivated today. Industrial hemp is a variety that is primarily cultivated for fiber and is characterized by long stems and little branching. There are also varieties grown for seeds from which hemp oil is extracted, and varieties grown for medical or recreational purposes.

The soil most suited for cultivating this plant is the deep, black, putrid vegetable kind that is low and inclined to moisture. This type of soil produces a greater quantity of produce. To get the ground ready for cultivating hemp, the ground should be reduced to a fine, mellow state of mould. The ground should also be completely cleared from weeds by repeated plowings. The ground should the plowed and harrowed three times: once after the preceding crop is removed, once early in the spring, and once just before the seed is put in. In the last plowing, well-rotted manure should be spread over the ground and turned into the land. The surface of the land should be left completely flat. The seed should be new and of good quality. You can tell this by the heavy feeling it has in your hand and the bright shining color. The hemp plant is extremely tender in its early growth, so early planting could be very detrimental to it. On the other hand, planting too late could affect the quality of the produce. The best season for growing hemp is as soon as the frosts are over in April. Generally, the method used for dispersing seeds is to broadcast them over the land and them lightly cover them by harrowing. Hemp can be planted in the same field for many years, but manure should be applied to the land every year to prevent exhaustion of the soil. Because hemp grows tall with thick foliage, there are usually few weeds that grow, so not much maintenance is required after planting. The grain is ripe when it becomes a whitish-yellowish color and begins to drop from the stems. This usually occurs around thirteen or fourteen weeks after sowing. To take hemp from the ground, it must be pulled up by the roots by hand in small parcels. As they are pulled, the plants should be sorted according to their ripeness. After the hemp is pulled, it is tied in small parcels, or baits. The stems are then pulled and bound up and the seed is allowed to dry and firm to shed freely. It is then threshed out upon large cloths. The hemp is then tied up in small bundles and tied at both ends. The bundles are put in ponds of stagnant water until the hempy material readily separates from the reed or stem. The hemp is then broken and swingled either by manual laborers or machines. It is then ready for the purposes of the manufacturer.

References
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