Hemp a promising crop

Ben Brimlow, lead agronomist with IND Hemp, sees potential for Idaho to be among the top five U.S. states for hemp production. He likes the Gem State’s volcanic soils, access to irrigation, climate and latitude. 

“What Pam Hutchinson is doing is just phenomenal. Her trials are amazing,” Brimlow said. “We’d be happy to support any further research with seed. It’s so important to us just to get this industry moving quicker and further.”

Fiber hemp grows in dense stands and can reach up to 20 feet tall. Herbicides will be most important before the crop establishes and can outcompete weeds.

Hutchinson planted plots with eight treatments, including both pre-emergence and post-emergence herbicides. She made an early season planting in mid-May and a later planting in mid-June. 

She’s been encouraged by a pair of herbicides labeled for use in potatoes: Prowl H2O and Linex. Stinger, a herbicide labeled for use in some other crops, has also shown promise. 

She’ll be working through the IR-4 Project, which was established to ensure specialty crop farmers can access crop protection products, to get the top-performing herbicides labeled for hemp production. 

Xi Liang, a cropping systems agronomist, will assist in future trials to answer hemp production-related questions for Idaho farmers. Hutchinson also plans to study the best methods to terminate hemp to make certain it doesn’t escape fields and become weedy.