Hemp
Hemp...A Help For TodayFor our purposes, hemp is the plant called cannabis sativa. There are other plants that are called hemp, but cannabis hemp is the most useful of these plants. In fact, cannabis sativa means "useful (sativa) hemp (cannabis)". "Hemp" is any durable plant that has been used since pre-history for many purposes. Fiber is the most well known product, and the word "hemp" can mean the rope or twine which is made from the hemp plant, as well as just the stalk of the plant which produced it. Cannabis is also the most durable of the hemp plants, and it produces the toughest cloth, called "canvass". Canvass was widely used as sails in the early shipping industry, as it was the only cloth which would not rot on contact with sea spray. The cannabis plant also produces three other very important products which the other hemp plants do not (in usable form, that is): seed, pulp, and medicine. The pulp is used as fuel, and to make paper. The seed is suitable for both human and animal foods. The oil from the seed can be used in as a base for paints and varnishes. And, the medicine is a tincture or admixture of the sticky resin in the blossoms and leaves of the hemp plant, and is used for a variety of purposes.
Hemp seed is a highly nutritious source of protein and essential fatty oils. The leaves can be used as roughage, but not without slight psycho-active side-effects. Hemp seeds do not contain any Marijuana and they do not get you "high." Hemp seed protein closely resembles protein as it is found in the human blood. It is fantastically easy to digest, and many patients who have trouble digesting food are given hemp seed by their doctors. Hemp seed oil provides the human body with essential fatty acids. Hemp seed is the only seed which contains these oils with almost no saturated fat. As a supplement to the diet, these oils can reduce the risk of heart disease. It is because of these oils that birds will live much longer if they eat hemp seed. With hemp seed, a vegan or vegetarian can survive and eat virtually no saturated fats. One handful of hemp seed per day will supply adequate protein and essential oils for an adult.
Hemp requires little fertilizer, and grows well almost everywhere. It also resists pests, so it uses little pesticides. Hemp puts down deep roots, which is good for the soil, and when the leaves drop off the hemp plant, minerals and nitrogen are returned to the soil. Hemp has been grown on the same soil for twenty years in a row without any noticeable depletion of the soil. Using less fertilizer and agricultural chemicals is good for two reasons. First,...
To view the complete essay, you be registered.