The World Miracle Plant - Hemp
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From: rpautrey2 on 5 Aug 2008 11:08 The World Miracle Plant - Hemp 1st August 2008 Imagine a plant that can make a plant that can make over 25,000 products from clothing to transport fuel. Well, there is no need to imagine, Hemp is a wonder plant with great potential that does exactly that. Here Fran from HempGarden, a company that uses Hemp Seed Oil to make a range of luxury bodycare products explains in some easy to read bullet points some very interesting facts about Hemp; HempGarden Hemp Facts * Hemp is the number 1 biomass producer on earth: 10 tonnes per acre in about 4 months. * Hemp can be made into fine quality paper: 1 acre of hemp in annual rotation over a 20-year period would produce as much pulp for paper as 4.1 acres of trees being cut down over the same 20-year period. Also the long fibres in hemp allow paper made form it to be recycled several times more than wood-based paper. * It grows well in a variety of climates and soil types. It is naturally resilient to most pests precluding the need for pesticides. It grows tightly spaced, out-competing any weeds, so herbicides are not necessary. It is also a perfect rotational crop as it leaves the field weed free and puts nutrients into the soil where it is grown. * Hemp has been grown for at least 12,000 years for fibre (textiles and paper) and food all over the world. In the UK there is evidence that hemp was grown from at least 800AD to the 19th century details of crops were entered into parish records and fragments of hemp material have been found dating back thousands of years. Think of Hemel Hempstead, Hempton, Hemp Hill . * The products that can be made from hemp number over 25,000. these include building materials for houses such as particle board, pressed board, core concrete construction moulds, paints, varnishes, anything made with plastic, the list is so long I cant go on! * Henry Ford experimented with hemp to build car bodies circa 1940, Rudolph Diesel designed his engine to run on hemp oil and BMW is currently experimenting with hemp materials in automobiles as part of an effort to make cars more recyclable. * Hemp fibres are longer, stronger and more absorbent and mildew- resistant than cotton. Hemp fabric is around 7/10 times stronger than cotton and gets softer and stronger as it gets older. Another advantage is that it is not water or chemical thirsty in the same way that cotton is - which currently accounts for 3% of the worlds arable land, 25% of the worlds pesticides and 7% of its fertilisers. It is thought to be UVB protective. * From Persia to China, Eastern Europe to Australia, cultures worldwide have celebrated this crop as a staple food. The seed and oil contain a unique combination of many essential nutrients vital for good health complete protein, essential fatty acids (the good fats), minerals, vitamins, fibre and carbohydrate making hemp seed natures most nutritionally complete food. Research has shown that hemp oil can boost the natural ability to heal and boost our immune systems. * Cosmetics and bodycare made with hemp seed oil as its base is excellent for most skins and dry skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis. * Hemp was a vital ingredient for the natural apothecaries of the middle ages - it was grown in hospital gardens, and was used by healers such as Hildegard von Bingen (12th century) and the father of natural medicines, Paracelus (16th century) * The Hemp plant stores carbon dioxide and is a sustainable alternative to all petro-chemicals.Due to its high cellulose content, hemp is an excellent crop from which to make ethanol and methanol fuels. Through a more complete combustion of hydrocarbons, they provide higher octane than petrol with less carbon monoxide so, a clean burning fuel that cleans your engine whilst it works. It sounds like we'll be hearing more and more about this exciting plant in the coming years. http://www.gardenandgreen.co.uk/#/hemp/4530230962 |