Hemp As A Survival Resource

[adoy]

Ok
I understand that it is illegal to grow hemp. ( please understand that Hemp is NOT the same as a pot plant)

My understanding is that the underlying reason that Hemp is illegal is because the cotton lobbies of old did not want to have to compete with a superior product.

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However, after SHTF i would certainly think hard about growing it as a survival resource.

It has many benefits to include:
Fibers that are many times stronger(and abrasion resistant) than cotton.
Easily grown requiring little to no fertilizers.
EDIBLE! ( high in protein) (Note for vegetarian preppers)

I am looking into hemp fabrics as I have a terrible time finding cloths that are built to last ( I am currently putting a pounding on the lifetime warranty Duluth trading fire hose pants and they are holding up rather well ,,, not hemp,, but good)

Perhaps someone more knowledgeable in the subject can help round out the information here.

Where to gets seeds? Illegal to have seeds? Growing techniques?
am I full of it?

[barib0]

I don't know where you live, but when I visited my son in Nebraska, the lower south east corner, he showed me the plants growing wild along back farm roads and they were prevelent. They are really good for making rope, can't say about clothes though. Hope this gives you some ideas.

[Klayton]

Agreed, I know a specific farmer in Wisconsin near my father's farm that grows 40acres of hemp, and every other fence post states (NON THC HEMP)... So, there must be exceptions... :)

[adoy]

Interesting.
It is available as a fabric (and pre made clothing) from other countries.
I am going to try to find some heavy duty pants made of hemp and try them out.

[eeyore]

might try this site http://www.naihc.org/IndustrialFibers.html
I seem to remember that they used to grow in Colonial Times

[WiseOwl]

Correct me if I am wrong but before cotton, hemp was the primary material used in clothing.

I used to own a hemp tshirt and I wore it out and it never wore. Ended up leaving it on a friends boat and never to be found again.

But the word hemp just scares folks to death and they dont care about the practical uses of it, they just think WEED and thats a no no in some circles.

[protus]

Correct me if I am wrong but before cotton, hemp was the primary material used in clothing.

I used to own a hemp tshirt and I wore it out and it never wore. Ended up leaving it on a friends boat and never to be found again.

But the word hemp just scares folks to death and they dont care about the practical uses of it, they just think WEED and thats a no no in some circles.

in the context of clothing, cordage etc as how we are keeping this thread is fine.....it diverts off that ...and i'll get the "weed" whacker out to clear it :)

[monkeybird]

LEGAL FACTS

*The US Drug Enforcement Agency classifies all C. sativa varieties as "marijuana." While it is theoretically possible to get permission from the government to grow hemp, DEA would require that the field be secured by fence, razor wire, dogs, guards, and lights, making it cost-prohibitive.

*The US State Department must certify each year that a foreign nation is cooperating in the war on drugs. The European Union subsidizes its farmers to grow industrial hemp. Those nations are not on this list, because the State Department can tell the difference between hemp and marijuana.

*Hemp was grown commercially (with increasing governmental interference) in the United States until the 1950s. It was doomed by the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, which placed an extremely high tax on marijuana and made it effectively impossible to grow industrial hemp. While Congress expressly expected the continued production of industrial hemp, the Federal Bureau of Narcotics lumped industrial hemp with marijuana, as it's successor the US Drug Enforcement Administration, does to this day.

*Over 30 industrialized democracies do distinguish hemp from marijuana. International treaties regarding marijuana make an exception for industrial hemp.

*Canada now again allows the growing of hemp.

http://naihc.org/hemp_information/hemp_facts.html

The site has some interesting facts about hemp. Sounds like the government is throwing the baby out with the bathwater.