Hemp

2024 Author: Jasmine Walkman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 08:29

Hemp (Cannabis), also known in Bulgaria as matrenaka, chernoyka, kanap, is one of the oldest known plants on earth, as well as one of the earliest cultivated plants by man. Although with countless proven applications in almost all areas of industrial production, hemp is now grown mainly for the production of fibers that are extremely strong and resistant to moisture.

The hemp plant belongs to the angiosperm department. It is an annual with a high growth rate and fat in the seeds. Cannabis is a diploid plant, which generally means that there are male and female plants. The male flowers are collected in panicles located in the axils of the upper leaves, while the female flowers are two in the axils of the bracts, forming spike-like inflorescences. Cannabis blooms July - August.

Hemp is a very adaptable plant, growing in abundance and on top of that it revitalizes the soil - it saturates the soil with oxygen and ultimately makes it more fertile. There is evidence that plants planted in fields where hemp was grown in the previous year grow significantly better.

There are many varieties of hemp, some of which are grown for marijuana. The word marijuana itself comes from the Mexican jargon for hemp. In the sense of the Bulgarian legislation (as well as of almost all the others) the cultivation of hemp for the purpose of extraction of cannabinoids is a crime and is punished by law.

Traditionally, hemp varieties with high psychoactivity have been grown in equatorial countries such as Jamaica, Mexico, Colombia, and generally in Central America, Africa, and Southeast Asia.

The different varieties hemp differ in size, shape of the whole plant, shape of the leaves, ripening period, yields, etc. For example, those of the Cannabis Indica variety are shorter and wider, branched and with larger leaves, ripening earlier and giving a high yield, while Cannabis Sativa has exactly the opposite characteristics and is similar to the fiber varieties.

The most common difference, however, is the amount of cannabinoids they contain. Their quantity varies according to the variety and growing conditions. With regard to cannabinoids, the individual varieties can be divided into 5 main types according to the criteria of the quantitative ratio of THC or CBD - the two main cannabinoids.

In our country you can find wild / self-growing hemp. There is water hemp (Eupatorium cannabinum), known as oak. Its stems reach a height of 50-150 cm and have cannabis-like leaves. It has pronounced healing properties that were known to the Indians.

History of hemp

As mentioned, hemp is one of the first plants that man cultivates. This happened during the Neolithic period in the lands of today's Asia in all probability, which automatically places it among the oldest crops on our planet. With the development of humanity and migration processes, hemp is also migrating and spreading.

This happened most intensely after the 15th century. military campaigns have spread to all continents. Our ancestors knew very well all the benefits and options for using cannabis. Hemp has been widely used to make clothing and strong ropes. It was clear that where cannabis was grown, there were almost no underground pests, such as blind dog, hog and others.

Hemp composition

It is considered that hemp is the plant that can save the earth from an ecological catastrophe, because from it can be produced ecologically equivalent to diesel fuel, cheaper and quality paper, etc. Hemp seeds contain 30 - 38% fatty oil. They consist mainly of the glycerides of unsaturated acids (linoleic, linolenic and butyric).

Hemp also contains proteins, amino acids, quebrahite alcohol, phenolic compounds (cannabinol, cannabidiol), the alkaloid trigonelline (C7H702N). It includes vitamin K, lecithin, cholesterol, sugars, choline, phytic acid, as well as many essential oils, bitter and tannin substances, saponins, eupatorin and others. Cannabis contains the substance Tetra Hidro Cannabinol, which is a hallucinogen and makes cannabis one of the weak drugs banned in most countries.

Use and applications of hemp

Sometime around the beginning of the last century, hemp was called the "Billion-dollar plant." Wondering why? Because its application in various spheres of life is so great that it does not even seem real. The February 1938 issue of Popular Mechanics states: "For the first time, a technical plant has the business potential to exceed a billion dollars."

The facts speak for themselves:

1. Hemp fibers are used to produce the highest quality and cheapest paper, using a much simpler and cheaper technology than wood paper. If paper begins to be produced from hemp fibers, it means the end of deforestation;

2. The most environmentally friendly diesel fuel is hemp oil. This is due to the high content of cellulose and in addition to being suitable for making paper, hemp oil is ideal for the production of ethanol. Ethanol, on the other hand, is the purest fuel liquid, which is a biologically pure alternative to gasoline. Ford's first car was almost entirely made of hemp - engine, fuel, coupe. Henry Ford himself grew hemp fields on the basis of which he closed the entire ecological production cycle;

3. Hemp oil can be used to produce plastics which, unlike petroleum oils, are completely environmentally friendly and do not pollute nature. Hemp oil itself decomposes in nature and turns into humus;

4. In addition to the conflicting opinions about parabens, which are used in the cosmetics industry and which are known to make human skin dependent on creams, lotions, etc., it is worth noting that hemp oil is a completely harmless and even useful raw material. for the cosmetics industry;

5. Hemp can find a huge and useful application in the pharmaceutical industry. There is evidence that the substances in it help fight cancer. The American Medical Association once supported cannabis drugs hotly;

6. Hemp fiber is the strongest technical fiber in the textile industry. For many centuries, clothes and even ship's ropes were made from hemp fibers.

These and countless other proven uses of hemp help us conclude that hemp is actually saving the earth from an environmental disaster. Its fibers can be used to make furniture, various building boards and much more.

Before the 20th century, there was strict legislation in America that regulated the cultivation of hemp. Moreover, the law provided for hefty fines for those who did not grow hemp. Because this useful, effective and completely ecologically clean plant can drive a large number of industrial sectors to bring clean, fast profit.

However, somewhere in the 1920s and 1930s, this seemed scary to the oil tycoons, who purposefully and gradually launched a massive campaign costing huge sums of money. Propaganda against the harmful plant spread in movies, publications, books, speeches of various celebrities, etc. And gradually people were overwhelmed and instilled fear of this "terrible scourge" for humanity, which causes disease, decay, destruction and what not.

To this day, the notoriety of hemp remains and does not find rehabilitation, although hemp today continues to produce strong fibers, insulation, cake, etc. Because of the cannabinoids, hemp is considered a weak drug, but there is no evidence of a person dying of cancer as a result of smoking marijuana. While smoking takes millions of lives every year.

Benefits of hemp

Cannabis is one of the weak drugs. There are countries in which its use is allowed and those in which doctors prescribe the so-called. medical marijuana. Hemp leaves have been shown to have anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. This is due to mucous substances, cannabis and others.

Hemp is revered even by Bulgarian folk medicine, which recommends hemp seeds to be used for coughs, difficulty urinating, purulent discharge and catarrh of the urinary system, dropsy, inflammation of the prostate, shortness of breath. The beneficial substances in cannabis are used in inflammation of the genitourinary system. The tops of hemp are used as a sedative and hypnotic.

Decoction of hemp seeds works well on the respiratory tract. It can be used against angina, runny nose, cough, inflammation of the bladder, urinary retention and even constipation. To do this, boil 15 g of hemp seeds in 250 ml of water for 10-15 minutes.

Water hemp in the form of tea helps against flu, liver and kidney pain and inflammation. This decoction is effective in constipation, sore throat and heart. Water hemp has an antibiotic-like effect, and even Americans in North America were well aware of its benefits. It is revered as a medicine for the liver.

Even today, medicine does not deny the benefits of hemp, but does not use 100% of the plant's potential for drug production. Degreased hemp seeds produce the substance feitin, which is used as a hematopoietic stimulant. It has the ability to increase bone growth and improve the function of the nervous system. It is used for neuroses, neurasthenia, hysteria, hypotension, anemia, impotence and others.

It should also be noted that hemp oil can serve as a healthy food, giving our body a lot of protein and omega-3 fatty acids. It is extremely useful for the care of appearance - skin and hair.

External application

You can boil and crush hemp seeds to make paws. They are extremely useful for bruises, boils, swelling, inflammation of the breasts of nursing mothers, sore throats.

Internal application

Boil 1 teaspoon of hemp seeds in 500 ml of boiling water and boil for 1 hour. Take 100 ml of the decoction before meals, 4 times a day.

Hemp damage

In case of water overdose hemp may cause vomiting. Marijuana, which is generally the dried and in some cases processed female inflorescences of some types of hemp, has the property of causing mild hallucinations, which are liked by an immense number of people around the world. There is no evidence that smoking marijuana harms the liver or kidneys. Cannabinoids are excreted in the urine. At high doses of marijuana, stronger hallucinations can be observed, which are more often auditory than visual.