396 THE FORAGE AND FIBER CROPS IN AMERICA 



acre between oat sowing and maize planting. It fully subdues 

 all weeds. 



Hemp is considered ready to harvest when the first ripe seed 

 is found in the head, which requires about 100 days. The har- 

 vesting depends somewhat upon the rankness of growth. Hemp 

 is cut with a mower or self-rake reaper when not too large, or 

 by hand, as in the case of maize. It is allowed to lie on the 

 ground until retted or rotted by dews and rains, when it is 

 shocked or tied in bundles and stacked. In some cases the hemp 

 is broken in the field, thus leaving the waste products upon the 

 soil; in other cases it is carried to a central place where more 

 rapid machinery is used. The yield of fiber may be from 

 500 to 1,500 pounds, and of seed from 10 to 30 bushels per acre. 

 When grown for seed, hemp is planted like maize, at the rate of 

 two quarts per acre. When retted by dews and rains, as is the 

 custom in this country, the fiber is gray and somewhat harsh, 

 but when retted in water, as in Italy, the fiber is creamy white, 

 lustrous, soft and pliable. 



Hemp is raised in this country for its fiber, but it is widely 

 raised elsewhere also for its oily seed and for the resinous exu- 

 dation from its leaves and stems, from which intoxicating prep- 

 arations are made. The hemp fiber raised in this country is 

 used chiefly for cordage and warp for carpets. 



III. JUTE 



500. JUTE fiber is obtained from two closely related annual plants (Chor- 

 chorus capsularis L. and C. olitorius L.), belonging to the linden family and 

 native of Asia. In general, they resemble hemp. The first form grows nine 

 to ten feet high, and has short, globular seed pods, while the second, nalta 

 jute, is smaller and has elongated, cylindrical pods. The bast fibers of both 

 are practically the same. The leaves of the nalta jute are also used as 

 a vegetable. 



Jute may be successfully grown in the cotton belt. These plants prefer 

 a moist, warm climate, and rich, alluvial soils. Seed may be sown broadcast 

 about the ^ame time as cotton, using 15 to 20 pounds of seed per acre, or 

 may be started in beds and subsequently transplanted. Plants are harvested 

 by cutting close to the ground or pulling up by the roots. Jute will not 



