Incorporating hemp into a rotation of extensive crops is a good option for the maintenance of soil fertility and to obtain good yields on wheat. It has a huge versatility and can be useful both for the textile, trashleman, pharmaceutical, automotive industry as in the world of construction. Your requirements: water in the first stadiums and a well-prepared soil. A future crop? Maybe yes.
The genus cannabis, along with the genus Humulus (hops), forms the family of cannabaceans. The official taxonomy used today is Cannabis sativa L. La "L" refers to the Swedish Botanco Carl Linnaeus, which recognized and named the plant for the first time in 1753. The selection of the plant by the man for several uses and the Natural selection imposed by different climates have caused a large number of plant species with diverse chemical compositions; Currently, more than 2,000 varieties are counted. When we talk about Cannabis we will always use the denomination hemp, or industrial hemp, to differentiate it from marijuana, a term with which we designate the restricted varieties of the presence of narcotics substances. Cannabis is the only plant genre capable of producing cannabinoids. The secretion occurs thanks to glandular cells that are at the terminations of pilient formations called trichomas, distributed along the surface of the inflorescences of the female flower. These substances are capable of reaching the receptors of the endocanabinoid system of the human body and are responsible for euphoria, anticonvulsive effects, anti-inflammatory action and other therapeutic properties of cannabis.So far, 113 cannabinoids have been identified on the plant. Among them, THC (9 tetrahydrocannabinol) is the substance with narcotic properties that is prohibited. Before flowering, in a growing field, it is not possible to distinguish between fiber hemp or hemp seeds for drugs (marijuana), if not through a chemical laboratory analysis.
Uses and hemp industry
Hemp cultivation can save humanity, as it can replace oil in almost all its applications. It is raw material for the preparation of more than 50,000 products and is useful for multitude of industrial applications. Hemp can give high quality textile fibers, is cellulose source for the trash farm, producing a high quality paper with little or no chemical requirement. It is also a biodegradable substitute for the plastic: through a mineralization reaction with the cabin (internal part of the hemp stem) is obtained a very hard and degradable plastic that is currently being used for the construction of bodies and cars panels, for the Aviation, etc.
A root of the Cannabis plant sativa, industrial hemp. It is used especially for the manufacture of medications.
A root of the Cannabis plant sativa, industrial hemp. It is used especially for the manufacture of medications.Hemp fibers can be used as thermal and acoustic insulation for construction, and with cabin mixed with lime (hempcrete, in Spanish concrete) are built houses, industrial buildings, prefabricated panels, blocks and a whole series of materials for The construction. Environmentally, cultivating hemp for construction is very interesting because the CO2 that has absorbed the cultivation is fixed on the material. A hectare of construction cannon can kidnap four tons of CO and it is estimated that a cubic meter of gauge can set 110 kilos of CO2.For the unbeatable hygroscopic and antibactericidal qualities, hemp gaites is used as a liquid absorbent, and is the best bed for farm animals. On the other hand, cannabinoids have very valuable therapeutic and medicinal properties, and now it becomes one of the products with the most projection of the future. They are also used for the cosmetic industry, for the elaboration of perfumes, dyes, etc.
As food, hemp seed is considered a "superstouriment", both for human and animal food. Hemp seeds are formed by 30% oil. Which is composed of at least 85% polyunsaturated fatty acids, with an excellent lipid profile (omega 3-6 and linolenic gamma acid), and contains moderate concentrations of antioxidants of the Vitamin E. complex. It also shows a high protein content Of 23-25%, with the presence of all essential amino acids.
The crop
Hemp is a spring-summer crop. In Catalonia, the cultivation of hemp can be done in semifrescal and fresh dry areas. The most limiting factors are pluviometry and temperature: it needs rainfall over 600 mm / year, and moderate temperatures around 25 ° C. With lower and / or oscillating rainfall, supportive irrigation to ensure its vegetative development and a good production. They are also limiting soil pH values, which must be greater than 5.5, and less than 7.5, as well as excess salinity and fear (the plant suffers radicular suffocation). Hemp needs well-worked, loose and deep lands. It grows well in warm climates (20-25 ° C during the day - 13-17 ° C at night) and humid. It is a culture very sensitive to late frost, especially during the first stage of development.Regarding the extraction of nutrients from the Sun, it is not demanding.
The growth of hemp with photoperiod: a minimum of eight hours of sun during the vegetative cycle are necessary. How many hours of sun, better for cultivation. For flowering you need short days, and if it is less than 14h flourishes very easily. For all this, in our latitudes it is not recommended to sow beyond San Juan.It is a short cycle crop, between 90 to 120 days, depending on the variety, climatic conditions and photoperiod. In summer, when the plant is already developed, hemp highlights water stress well; Therefore, in fresh and semifrescal dry it is recommended to advance the sowing to take advantage of the spring rains and thus ensure the correct vegetative development, especially rooting. Harvest usually goes from mid-July until the end of September, according to the cultivation and purpose of hemp; Early for fibers - when the plant is still green - and later by then, already with the almost dry plant.