278 THE SOILS AND CROPS OF THE FARM. 



Asia, and has been cultivated from remote times in 

 China. 



It is now extensively cultivated in many countries 

 for one or more of three purposes : (1 ) the fibre of its 

 stems; (2) the resin exuded on leaves and stems; (3) 

 and for its oily seeds. In some places it is grown 

 chiefly for the resinous exudation, from which various 

 intoxicating preparations are made. Five times the 

 population of the United States get drunk on these 

 preparations. 



Hemp was one of the first plants introduced 

 by the American colonists. It is now considerably 

 grown in the United States for its fibre, from which 

 cordage and coarse cloth are made. Hemp bind- 

 ing twine is becoming a regular article of trade. It 

 has been chiefly raised in the blue grass regions of 

 Kentucky, but it is now being raised in several north- 

 ern states in connection with cordage and other fac- 

 tories, notably in New York and Illinois. 



It thrives best in a temperate climate and on any 

 soil adapted to Indian corn. Where the waste pro- 

 ducts are returned to the land it is not considered an 

 exhaustive crop. In some places it is raised contin- 

 uously for many years on the sanie land. 



Hemp is a rough erect annual, eight to ten feet high, 

 with male and female flowers on separate plants. The 

 fibre is from the inner bark. The yield of fibre may 

 be from 500 to 1,500 pounds, and of seed per acre ten 

 to thirty bushels. 



It is usually sown broadcast at the rate of four to six 

 pecks per acre between oat sowing and corn planting. 

 It fully subdues all weeds. 



The harvesting depends somewl^^t on the ranknesa 



