Research Poster Session at 2022 PA Hemp Summit

The PA Hemp Summit is returning to a full-sized event this November! After hosting portions of the event online the past two years due to COVID-19 concerns, the Reception, Summit, and Trade Show will take place in-person at the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, PA.

The 2022 convention will feature reimagined educational programming, with more interactive and non-conventional presentations. Another first for the event will be a local Research Showcase, which aims to highlight students and researchers across a wide array of disciplines.

From the Call for Proposals:

The Hemp Research Poster Session is a professional development opportunity that will bring together students and investigators of industrial hemp along with industry and government leaders to spark conversation about the future directions of hemp innovation. Join us at this interactive session to engage with community members and network.

Submissions are invited from Academic and Research Institutions on one or more of the following topics related to Industrial Hemp:

Agronomy

Genetics

Cultivation

Pest Management

Herbicide & Weed Control

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Grain

Fiber

CBD

Nutrition

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Environmental Impact

Risk Management

Safety

Budget and Finance

To learn more on how to participate, please download the Request for Proposals, which is attached here:

Hemp Summit - Poster Presentation RFP.pdf

Download PDF • 45KB

Growing Hemp At Oakley Farm

What's happening this month?

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The days are getting much longer, and the weather is fickle. The forecrop plots planted October 7, 2021, are growing in fitsand-starts just like the weather. Cosaque Oats, a black oat known for allelopathy, was planted a few weeks too early. It is covering the ground, but not as robust as the other three crops. The untreated plots are fairly well covered with weeds, including henbit, Poa trivialis (“Poa Triv” or rough bluegrass) and dandelions.

In the middle of the month, our research farm team terminated the forecrops and untreated plots during the few days of 70 °F plus temperatures. Depending on temperature, the plants

should die in 10 to 14 days. Then the field will be rototilled and weed seeds allowed a week or more to germinate. The field will be rototilled lightly two more times after surface weed seeds

germinate. Our target hemp planting date is the second week of May, depending on weather and field conditions. After the third tillage pass, hemp will be planted on the same day.

Forecrops were terminated at about 12 inches tall in Mid-April. Temperatures were above 55°F for several days.

Hemp seed for the variety trial is beginning to arrive from breeders. New varieties will be compared to our current portfolio when grown after the forecrops. A second field will be planted with one variety following winter annual trials. An August Hemp Field Day is being planned. Stay tuned!

Accounting For Carbon in Hemp Production Systems

A GHG Auditor's Perspective

Industrial hemp exists at the nexus of environmental and economic decarbonization. Historically, we have eroded our agricultural production system’s ability to naturally self-regulate in pursuit of higher yields and wider margins. As a result, our ability to adapt to increasingly dramatic fluctuations in our climates temperature and moisture levels is handicapped at a time we need it most. Without the proper accounting and crediting methods, the environmental value proposition for cultivating industrial hemp remains a shallow narrative.

Like a financial auditor, the Greenhouse gas (GHG) auditors’ role is to inventory and account for the fluctuation of different emissions produced in a particular project’s operational scope. Scientific methods of systematic sampling, inventorying, and modeling are used to determine accuracy and performance. This data is compiled and reported in a Greenhouse gas statement which is denominated in “Tons of Carbon Dioxide Equivalencies”. More commonly referred to as ‘tC02e’, it is analogous to the reserve currency a business operates in and expects to see on any fiscal reporting. While many production systems produce a positive (+, as in “more”) amount of GHGs, some natural production systems containing carbon-based lifeforms, like forests or soils, can absorb GHGs over time. When audited properly, this amounts to a negative (-, as in less than zero) number. Many times, and especially in agriculture, other Greenhouse gasses such CH4 and N20 exist during the production cycle. As every greenhouse has as a distinct ‘global warming potential’, these gasses are converted into the base unit of measurement, tC02e. This is where the term “equivalency” comes from. These systems and mechanisms serve to de-risk and increase transparency.

As it pretrains to agriculture, and more specifically the cultivation of industrial hemp, GHG auditing must be viewed from a wider, more holistic lens. Managing GHG reductions depends largely on the permanence of storage. Success is determined by how well and how long a GHGs can be fixed in biological matter. This is expressed in two ways, “Ton-Year” accounting and “Ton-Ton” accounting methods. In the case of hemp, some GHG storage will occur in soils as roots and other microorganisms propagate. A Ton-year approach is best in soil enrichment. However, most GHGs will be stored in the bast fibers and leaves. This is best quantified using a “Ton-Ton” approach. Too often, a hard and fast number is attributed to hemps ability to sequester GHG, when in fact performance is a function of efficiency and growth rate. It is important to understand how an inventory is to be conducted in this context. While some sophisticated satellite imaging and modeling technology can be used to make accurate inferences at lower cost, direct sampling of soils and biomass volumes remains the most reliable method.

As we navigate towards a more sustainable future, the ESG “race to the top” mentality continues to solidify. Wise business leaders who think strategically will understand that success is determined not just by risk and reward, but ever increasingly impact as well. A case study in low embodied emissions products in the industrial hemp supply chain, IND Hemp and Hempitecture recently announced a cooperative partnership presumably to produce, process and manufacture domestic hemp fiber insulation. Science and logic concur that a product consisting of natural materials has a lower carbon profile (or footprint) than that of a synthetic material. These valuable products don’t just increase a buildings energy efficiency, saving costs over the long term, but also reduce the embodied emissions profile of a building overall. Traditional mineral wool insulation on the other hand requires massive amounts of fossil fuel energy to manufacture and increases the emissions profile of a building. While hemp is not the answer to climate change, it is an important component of the solution. The more we support similar operations’ capacity to cultivate, quantify and utilize hemp intelligently, the better our ability to mitigate the risks of global warming and track success. If you are a cultivator of industrial hemp, interested in cultivating industrial hemp, own a company that processes industrial hemp, please consider contacting a GHG auditor to learn more about GHG inventorying and decarbonization techniques in agricultural production systems. Without the recognized levels of assurance provided by a certified GHG auditor, leveraging your GHG impact is an exercise in greenwashing at your own risk.