Hemp Facts

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the below is a paper i wrote for my environmental class. it will give a brief history and some hemp facts that are interesting. (i'm not a good paper writer, so excuse any gramer errors, etc.)

The cultivation and use of Cannabis sativa; Hemp.
The Myths and Facts Surrounding Cannabis Sativa L.; Hemp.

To defy a myth, industrial hemp is not the same as marijuana. Cannabis Sativa L., also known as industrial hemp, contains less than 0.3% percent THC, the chemical that gets people high. The marijuana plant, though in the same genus as Cannabis Sativa L., contains 5-15% THC, and is planted one to two plants per square meter for full bushy leaves. The hemp plants are planted close together to form a dense crop to reduce the amount of leaves and to ensure tall stocky plants. (HIA) When I worked for The Body Shop, an environmental store found in most malls and all across the world, there was a line of products made from hemp. At first when I saw the picture of what I thought was a pot leaf I was confused. I soon found out what industrial hemp was, its benefits, and its connection with restoring the environment back to balance (Body Shop). However, the lack of governmental support for a crop that is extremely versatile, eco-friendly, and manufactured into thousands of products shows how money can rule the world. It seems the anti-drug campaigns are getting mixed up with the true definitions of industrial hemp and ignorance is breeding ignorance. Referring to the botanically distinct differences of industrial hemp and marijuana, John W. Roulac says, "Should garden poppies be plowed under because another closely related member of the genus is grown for heroin? Yet this very logic is used to maintain the current suppression of hemp farming in the United States" (7). Hemp is not only an Eco-friendly crop, but will take the place of timber, petroleum and other renewable resources that are vital to our environment, even though there are conspiracies to keep it illegal to grow in America. ("Horizons")

Hemp's earliest piece of history that has been discovered is a piece of hemp fabric dating approximately 8,000 BC (HIA). Hemp was one of the earliest crop plants of China. According to Chinese history and archeological findings, hemp use in China spans approximately 5,000-6,000 years back. China was the first region to use hemp in cultivation, taking a wild plant and domesticating it for use. Even 5-6 thousand years ago, the Chinese knew of its diverse uses and environmental value (i.e. drying the plant to fertilize the soil) (Bray). From China hemp seed was traded and traveled to Korea and from Korea to the Japanese island of Kyushu. In Japan hemp was used for numerous items such as: eel fishing lines, straps for their wooden sandals, and paper. Not only did hemp play a part in everyday life, but was also used for spiritual relics aswell. Hemp symbolized purity and fertility. A shrine near Osaka, Japan was erected for dedication to hemp. The name of this shrine is Taimdo, which translates into "hemp shrine". Hemp was then traded and traveled across Asia, along the Mediterranean, and into Europe. Artifacts of hemp dating back to approximately 400 BC were found in Stuttgart, Germany, and in 1150 AD the Moorish Spaniards created the first paper mill of western civilization. Hemp was used in the construction of the Egyptian pyramids and the first printed bibles were on hemp paper. Nearing closer to modern civilization, in the 1700's into the 1800's, Russia exported hemp more than any other agricultural export. Galileo kept his notes on none other than hemp paper (Trivia). When the English sailed across the waters to settle in what is now America, they brought with them hemp and soon set up their own hemp farms in the colonial towns they settled. Americans, at that time, were legally bound to grow hemp. The New World was not the only place manufacturing hemp products such as rope, cloth and paper, but Canada, Mexico, Central and South America also had hemp farms ("Horizons"). Hemp farming in Colonial America lasted past the American Revolution. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson grew industrial hemp. Betsy Ross sewed the first American flag using hemp cloth. Abraham Lincoln used hemp oil (derived from the seeds) to light his reading lamps. Francis Scott Key wrote the first verse of the Star Spangled Banner on a hemp envelope. The original drafts of the Declaration of Independence were written on paper made from hemp. Benjamin Franklin built one of the first hemp paper mills in America. The covered wagons of the pioneers were made using hemp canvas. The original LEVI'S were made from hemp cloth. Henry Ford built and powered a car using hemp in the 1930's. During World War II, after years of decline in the American hemp industry, pro hemp war posters were distributed across the country urging people to grow hemp (due to hemp's ability to reach maturity within approximately 100 days) to help efforts in winning the war. (Trivia).

The decline of hemp, pre-civil war, was mostly in part from the invention of the Cottongin in 1793 by Eli Whitney. The cotton engine (Cottongin), not technically a machine at all, changed the way cotton was harvested. Prior to the invention of the Cottongin, cotton took too long to harvest. The invention of the Cottongin was not welcomed by the slaves. Though harvesting hemp was difficult because of the difficulty in separating the core fibers, harvesting cotton was even more time consuming before the Cottongin. With its invention more cotton crops could be planted and the slaves would be forced to work longer days to keep up with the harvesting of the 'new crop of the south', cotton (Smith). Though industrial hemp was still a crop regularly planted, the anti-drug scare of the 1920'-1930's increased the declining farming practices to the point that people were scared to farm the crop. The short reemergence was only because of (WWII) the government contradicting itself and persuading farmers to grow hemp for war efforts. After the war, the push to grow hemp drastically stopped and infact once again the misconception of hemp being marijuana began to emerge. The government seems to go dilly dally, back and forth on what the definition of hemp is. Needless to say, the decline can also be linked to the invention of the decorticator, a machine that would surpass any harvesting method for hemp so far, thus threatening the timber/paper industry. Along with the conspiracy theory of the timber/paper industry pushing for the criminalzation of hemp/marijuana, Dupont after freshly obtaining a patent on making plastics using oil and coal and a wood pulp for paper are also suspects in the pay off theory. (Kentucky Moment). In 1931, the All-Union Scientific and Research Institute of Bast Crops was established in the town of Glukhov, and is still in existence, to study the hemp plant. For almost 70 years it has developed technologies for growing and harvesting in different soil and climatic zones, processing of the harvested plant and designing the equipment used to harvest crops. (P. Goloborod'ko)

Hemp is an extremely eco-friendly crop! The plant itself is naturally resilient to pests; therefore the need for pesticides is rarely required when the crop is grown in rotation. Hemp also 'stomps out weeds', it is considered a natural herbicide by not allowing weeds to grow by smothering them out. Because hemp seeds are sowed densely and the plant grows quickly, averaging 16 feet high, and reaching maturity in approximately 100 days, the crop does not give weeds a chance to thrive. The leaves are left to drop and thus in turn, hemp, is a self-mulcher, adding nutrient rich humus to soil ("Horizons" and HIA). Poland has used hemp's replenishing characteristics and actually reversed damaged done by contamination to the soil from heavy metals. ("HIA") Cannabis Sativa L. can adjust to any climatic conditions it is grown in, that is why it is a thriving crop all around the globe. Regions such as Europe, Asia, North America, South America, and Central America can easily cultivate this crop. Hemp has soil-enhancing capabilities because the soils stay cooler than other row crops, because of hemp's height and quick maturity time. After the crop has been harvested farmers take a portion of the crop and lay it over the now barren soil and let the hemp dry and regenerate the soil, as a result returning 60 and 70% of the nutrients back into the ground. Like many crops, its penetrating roots help eliminate erosion and aerate the soil. Hemp is also a high yield crop. One acre of hemp, over a year, produces more biomass than most crops. It is a low polluting renewable resource that can also be used to replace wood and fossil fuels. ("Horizons" and HIA)

Hemp can help eliminate the excessive need for many of our environmental resources. The long fibers of the stalk are used in textiles. The fabric is much more durable compared to cotton and takes dyes better aswell. The long fiber can also be used in replacement of fiberglass; hemp being biodegradable, whereas fiberglass is hazardous. The medium fiber is used for paper, hygiene products, and diapers, thus eliminating the need to cut down trees for paper ("Horizons"). Hemp paper can be recycled more times than timber paper (HIA). The short core fiber is used in the manufacturing of plastics to replace the need of petroleum. The short core fiber can also be mixed with lime, producing a strong, lightweight form of concrete and plaster. Short core fiber can also be a stronger substitute for wood. The hemp plant as a whole, no matter how you break it down and use it, holds antimildewing and anitimicrobial properties. Hemp can not only replace the need for timber, petroleum and cotton (which is a crop that requires heavy amounts of pesticides, consequently contaminating the environment and harming animals) but can also replace the need for gasoline; hemp oil can be used to fuel a car ("Horizons").

Here is a short list of everyday items you can manufacture/produce using industrial hemp.