The first field to be planted was sifted to remove rocks, and a disc was placed on the tractor to further break up the ground Wednesday, Feb. 26. On Thursday, Feb. 27, soil was placed before the disc made one final pass over the property. (Photo by Travis Rains/Kingman Miner)
The first field to be planted was sifted to remove rocks, and a disc was placed on the tractor to further break up the ground Wednesday, Feb. 26. On Thursday, Feb. 27, soil was placed before the disc made one final pass over the property. (Photo by Travis Rains/Kingman Miner)
More than 10,000 hemp seeds got their start on Wednesday, Feb. 26. (Photo by Travis Rains/Kingman Miner)
Wednesday, Feb. 26 marked the first day of planting efforts for Hemp Inc.’s Veterans Village Kins Community near Dolan Springs, with approximately 10,000 hemp seeds planted in a single day.
The seeds were planted in trays starting Wednesday morning, and in about two weeks, will be ready to be transplanted to either a field or a bigger pot. Farmers Beau Beauchamp and Mike Simmons explained that timing is everything when growing hemp. Approximately $7,000 was spent on soil for the first grow, which will take about 80 days. Simmons said the goal is to have three to four crops a year.
“Six weeks into flower, your CBD level has peaked and it’s not going to get any higher,” Beauchamp explained. “That’s a wrap right there at six weeks. Depending on the strain, maybe eight weeks, but six weeks into flower your CBD stops and your THC increases.”
That means at six weeks, or eight depending on the strain, the plants must be pulled in order to ensure THC is not being produced at an illegal level. CBD is cannabidiol, and unlike the THC, is not intoxicating.
When the 2018 Farm Bill was signed into law, it became legal to grow industrial hemp, and the commodity is no longer considered a Schedule 1 illegal substance under federal law.
Bruce Perlowin, “King of Hemp” and partner in the endeavor, explained that “the legal definition of hemp is a cannabis plant that is below .3% THC and THC A. If a cannabis plant is below .3%, it’s not marijuana; it’s hemp.”
Hemp has numerous uses including health care products, shampoo, clothing and much more. Many of those products will be sold at The King of Hemp Store when it opens its doors in downtown Kingman in a few months. However, another use for hemp is home construction using hempcrete. Hempcrete is primarily composed of the plant’s ground-up stock, along with lime or sand.
The village already has one structure made of hempcrete, what has been dubbed “the classroom,” and will be a space for hemp education. But the possibilities for hempcrete go far beyond a single structure.
“This builds houses,” Simmons said, noting that the material can be used to construct homes for veterans. “This is the real stuff right here.”
That comes into play for the operation because the goal is to create a Veterans Village Kins Community, at which people will receive a plot of land on which to live and grow hemp. Veterans will receive first priority, but others will be able to engage in the operation as well. That component is not quite ready, as there remain zoning considerations to be worked out.
“We’re trying to provide a program for the veterans when they get out of the service,” explained Project Manager Dwight Jory, noting that others interested in living off-grid and growing hemp will be welcome, too.
Contributions to the community won’t stop there, as Simmons intends to put his 25% of the operation’s profits toward activities for children, and perhaps boys and girls clubs, for Golden Valley and Dolan Springs.
But dirt was still turning on Wednesday. The first field to be planted was sifted to remove rocks, and a disc was placed on the tractor to further break up the ground. On Thursday, Feb. 27, soil was placed before the disc made one final pass over the property. From there, rows will be created and the planting and growing process will begin its final steps.
