For millennia ago, humanity has been familiar with hemp and all its benefits. This plant had an important place in the textile industry, pharmacy, agriculture, etc. People were also aware of its beneficial effects on health, but until more detailed research was conducted in the 1950s, the use of this plant in medicine was not widespread. In this post, you will find how you can grow your own hemp and its benefits.
Three decades ago, scientists discovered the new system in humans and the components that drive it, better known as endocannabinoids. Hemp contains herbal counterparts to these compounds – cannabinoids, which activate receptors in the ECS and maintain body homeostasis. CBD and THC are the best-known representatives of these compounds.
Apart from consumption and processing into CBD oil, weed has many other purposes. Read more about them at this link. If you have a piece of land to start breeding, you can grow your own hemp strain you want, as they are suitable for crossbreeding.
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Control the Harvest Process
On your plantation, you can have an insight into when the crop is ready for harvest. Buds are known to have the highest potential for use when harvested at the right time. With a small number of stems, you can observe their maturation and know when they are ready for picking.
If you grow strains that contain THC, you need to be especially careful. As plants mature, the percentage of this cannabinoid in them increases. As the recommended (permitted) amount of THC is 0.3% in cultivation, care should be taken not to exceed this percentage.
You can use a visual inspection method on a small hemp crop to determine if the plant is ready for harvest. You should look at the small glands under flowers (called trichomes). When they turn to milky white, the buds are ready for picking.
Still, this method is not entirely reliable. You shouldn’t rely on it if you are looking to grow your own hemp for the first time. For your safety, it is best to test your plants for CBD content. That’s the most accurate way to know when the time is right. Besides, these tests may also indicate the presence of contaminants, parasites, and pests that may endanger your yield.
Know the Strain Composition
The great thing about hemp is that all its parts are usable. For personal use, growers will mostly pick flowers, leaves, and possibly seeds. If you breed this plant yourself, you have an insight into the strain you want to grow and the whole process until harvest.
The hemp flower has the most purpose. As explained on sites like https://cheefbotanicals.com/can-you-smoke-hemp/, it can be dried and ground for smoking or further processing into hemp-infused products. Buds contain the most cannabidiol, and you can get highly concentrated CBD oil from them. It’s also possible to extract CBD from leaves, stalks, or seeds.
Hemp is naturally high in CBD, and each manufacturer can cross different strains to get the one that suits them best. In this way, you can control the percentage of CBD but also THC in your crop. That’s good to know, as THC-rich breeds are not allowed in some countries.
Keep Male Hemp on Eye
All breeders know that female hemp plants are most desirable for breeding. If you’re a beginner, you can always ‘miss’ a male plant, especially if you can’t tell them apart by seed or in the early stage. Although it’s not desirable to have a male in your crop (due to excessive pollination, female buds may have too many seeds that can spoil them), you can keep an eye on this ‘gentleman’ and get the most of it.
Male hemp plants can be successfully used for controlled fertilization. With them, you can create strains resistant to diseases and parasites. Males also contain CBD, but unlike female plants, the highest concentration of this compound is in the leaves. Properly crossed, high-potent strains can be obtained.
As soon as you notice a ‘spy’ among the female stalks, transplant it to a safe distance. This way, you will avoid pollination and still benefit from this guy. Due to the massive amounts of aromatic terpenes, the male stalk is excellent for dispersing pests and beetles that can damage your crops.
In the states that have legalized cannabis, grow your own hemp for industrial and personal use. If you are not planning commercial production, this can be quite an exciting and useful hobby. You will enjoy the hemp and know it’s of top quality.
