'New interest in an old crop
by HAROLD GAGE
Hemp In Kentucky?   Well, yes. During the last half of the nineteenth century, before other states and fibers began to compete, the cultivation of hemp in Kentucky was an industry comparable in importance to what tobacco is now.   Of course its cultivation then was neither as risky nor nearly as euphoric as growing it now is, and the industry was considerably lacking in imagination, which perhaps accounts for its subsequent decline; during those primitive times it was a legal crop, but instead of keeping the leaves as well as the stems, whose tough fibers made good rope, they kept the stems and threw away the leaves, which they considered useless.
The singular inefficiency of this is apparent when you consider the statistics.   In 1850 the leaf from 40, 000 tons of pot (about 80, 000, 000 lbs. ) was discarded. ,The population of the United States was about 25, 000,.000 at that time, which means that roughly 3. 2 lbs. of dope per person was wasted.   Even setting aside the probable effects of that much dope on the civil war, the lack of foresight on the part of the industry is staggering.
Unfortunately, after the advent of cheap, imported jute, coupled with the rise of the U.S. Narcotics Bureau, the production of hemp went into a steep decline.   Since 1937 cultivation of hemp in Kentucky, on an active basis, has dropped practically to nothing.   Since the 1960's however, there has been a revival of interest in domestic hemp production, which perhaps accounts for the strange looking people you see studying Hemp in Ken-
tucky signs and photographing them. With the rise in the practice of cultivating the weed for its leaf, the domestic hemp industry has gained a new lease on life, despite government attempts at restrictive regulation.
Business practices aside, however, spring is here, and if you're interested and a little bit handy at gardening, you may be able to benefit from the heritage of a fine old crop.   Or if you've spent the winter carefully saving the seed from each lid of grass you've used, now is the time to release their energy in earth and growth.
Already growing in states such as Kentucky, Nebraska, and Kansas (I read somewhere that last year an estimated 53, 000 acres of hemp grew wild in Kansas) grass is an annual crop that needs you to go yout there and commune with it.   Although the quality of this weed is somewhat inferior to the best Mexican and Vietnamese stuff, it is, I can assure you, well worth the effort and even if you don't spot any, the countryside is in full bloom now.   Of course, You shouldn't actually, intentionally, hunt' for it.   If you do that you not only probably won't find it, you'll miss the beauty of the surroundings, too. But if you go out and get into the country, dig the farm buildings, animals, flowers, stone fences, and hillsides, the hemp, good-natured, flamboyant weed that it is, will playfully wave at you as you go by;
Blithe of heart, for week to week Thou dost play at hide-and-seek.
The reward of seeing it "fluttering and dancing in the breeze" is practically
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enough by itself, but an even greater reward awaits if you're patient enough to wait until after it blooms to begin your harvesting.   Then the resin production important to its protection from heat, and fundamental to the "peculiar spell" it produces, is complete.
One vital thing to remember is that pot is an "annual. "  This simply means that it has to planted from seed each year.   Although the plant hasn't been cultivated on a large scale for a long time in the U.S. it has survived by reseeding itself annually from the seed dropped by the female plants.   It will continue to grow wild this way only if you are considerate enough to leave some seed bearing plants standing in each location you harvest in the fall. This is another good reason why you should let the plant reach maturity before harvesting it.   Then you can pick the plants that are "bursting with ripeness to the core" and leave behind some seed plants so that, from year to year, as "long as the sun sets, " there will be more.
If, however, you're not in a situation that makes it easy or safe to look for it, perhaps you should try growing it. Remember,
Whan that Aprill with his shoures soote
The droughte of March hath perced to the roote,
then its time to start the plant communing with sun and earth.   Take the seed you've kept warm and safe and let them bathe overnight in water you've warmed in the sun.   This will soften the hard, dry shell of the seed and quicken its speck of life.   In the morning, take