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Virginia's hemp research program 'a work in progress'
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Virginia's hemp research program 'a work in progress'
By SARAH RANKIN Associated Press 5 hrs ago
RICHMOND — Virginia is wrapping up its second year of a research program that allows farmers to grow hemp, a crop long banned because of its association with marijuana.
The 78 acres planted across the state in 2017 was more than double the 2016 total. ... But research reports and interviews with those involved in the program show the challenges that come with cultivating a plant that had not been grown in Virginia for decades.
"It's still a work in progress, but there's movement toward identifying those varieties that are going to be more successful in the Virginia soil, Virginia climate," said Erin Williams, a senior policy analyst with the state agriculture department.
....
Another arm of the project taking place at the UVa-Wise campus in southwest Virginia is focused on finding varieties of hemp that could be used to clean up and reclaim abandoned coal mines through a process called phytoremediation. Limited rainfall and aggressive weed growth limited the growth of that crop in 2017, according to the annual report.
By SARAH RANKIN Associated Press 5 hrs ago
RICHMOND — Virginia is wrapping up its second year of a research program that allows farmers to grow hemp, a crop long banned because of its association with marijuana.
The 78 acres planted across the state in 2017 was more than double the 2016 total. ... But research reports and interviews with those involved in the program show the challenges that come with cultivating a plant that had not been grown in Virginia for decades.
"It's still a work in progress, but there's movement toward identifying those varieties that are going to be more successful in the Virginia soil, Virginia climate," said Erin Williams, a senior policy analyst with the state agriculture department.
....
Another arm of the project taking place at the UVa-Wise campus in southwest Virginia is focused on finding varieties of hemp that could be used to clean up and reclaim abandoned coal mines through a process called phytoremediation. Limited rainfall and aggressive weed growth limited the growth of that crop in 2017, according to the annual report.
