Hemp seed

As far as is known, this plant originally comes from Central Asia and its use presumably dates back to the Stone Age. Hemp has been cultivated for more than 10,000 years and has been grown in virtually every part of the world. Hemp contains countless nutrients and has been used by a great many different cultures throughout the centuries, ranging from the ancient Indians, Mesopotamians, Sumerians, Persians and Egyptians to indigenous tribes in Central America. The hemp from which hemp seeds and hemp oil are made is also known as industrial hemp and, unlike marijuana, has virtually no psychoactive effect.

Hemp (Cannabis sativa) is an annual plant from the hemp family (Cannabaceae). It is dioecious and bears greenish flowers.

The staminate flowers (male) grow in panicles and the pistillate flowers (female) grow in spikes in the leaf axils. The leaves are long-stalked with five to nine lance-shaped lobes and are coarsely serrated. The plant grows 1 to 4 metres tall depending on altitude and/or climate. It is a hardy plant that can be grown without pesticides or herbicides.