Location: National Programs
Project Number: 0500-00103-001-000-D
Project Type: In-House Appropriated
Start Date: Apr 2, 2020
End Date: Apr 1, 2023
Objective:
The objective will be to provide agronomic information that helps support the incorporation of hemp into farming operations within the U.S.
Approach:
Research will focus on four areas regarding hemp production (1) agronomic and plant breeding needs to ensure that hemp is in compliance with the definition of hemp (ensuring that tetrahydrocannibanol levels remain below legal levels: (2) basic information needed to grow hemp efficiently (irrigation, fertilizer use, soil types, breeding, disease and pest management); (3) management information required to incorporate hemp into existing farm production systems (optimal crop rotations, interactions with other crops); (4) alternative uses of hemp (fiber use, livestock feed). Research will define growing conditions and develop plant varieties that constrain hemp to the legally defined characteristics of hemp. Water and nutrient use and their interactions with soil types, hemp varieties, and diseases and pests of hemp will be elucidated. Optimal management schemes to incorporate hemp into existing production systems will be developed to ensure that incorporation of hemp leads to profitable production. Finally, research will be performed to develop alternative uses of hemp, including uses for hemp fiber, hemp chemical constituents, and the potential for use of hemp as an animal feed, including nutrient compositions and hemp palatability to various livestock species.
