There is just no getting around it: hemp has a reputation. The word conjures images of hippies, tie-dye, headshops, whiffs of patchouli and the uncomfortable sense of something vaguely illicit, or at least illicit-adjacent. Even researching this article in a public library, as I did, was an exercise in frustration: every other article was blocked off by sternly worded error pages warning of forbidden content.
Hemp is a bast-fibre textile taken from fast-growing plants of the Cannabis genus (it’s usually the taller and less bushy Cannabis sativa that produces better thread). Bast fibres are made of cellulose, grow naturally inside the stems or bark of plants and trees, and include flax (linen), nettle, jute, ramie and hemp. They all tend to be difficult to extract, but have a long staple length, are strong and durable, feel cool to the touch and have been used across the world for thousands of years.
Hemp is a case in point. Native to and widespread across the Eurasian continent, it is believed to have been domesticated at least 12,000 years ago in China and the Caucasus, and used for everything from food to oil, paper to medicine and from rope to clothing.
Making cloth from hemp is time-consuming. First, the plants must be harvested at the right time: earlier for finer cloth, later for a rougher texture and cordage or rope-making. The bast fibres then need to be extracted from the stem. Historically, this was done by soaking the plants in pools of stagnant water, which softened up the stems and began breaking down the gum that holds the fibres together. Once gathered, the fibres are cleaned and spun or spliced into thread that could then be woven into cloth. Hemp rope and cloth are naturally resistant to rot and mildew, making it particularly valuable in damp conditions.
Hemp seeds were among the essential items taken over to America by early European settlers to Jamestown, and it became a major cash crop. The 18th-century warship the USS Constitution, for example, carried over 130,000 pounds of hemp rope and 30,000 pounds of sailcloth. Hemp’s fall from grace was gradual. As early as the 13th century, it was being displaced by cotton in Asia, a pattern that was repeated over the following centuries across the world. Although cotton cloth was less durable, it was less time-consuming to process and easier to dye, something that became increasingly important to consumers.
The final blows fell in the early 20th century, when fears about drug dependency resulted in laws being passed that criminalised cannabis completely. Rehabilitation has been halting. Cooler, tougher and more sustainable though hemp may be, the world has grown used to the look and feel of cotton.
