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Please also refer to Hempner.net and Simsal.net
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Long Fibres for Textiles
Seed:
Winter hemp with various fibre-rich hemp species such as Finola, Fedora, Felina, Erlyna, "Schöne vom Albis"..., (rediscovered, old species) 45 kg/ha sown in August, at this seed density the weeds succumb, the hemp stalks remain slender and fine. Harvest: Harvesting of winter hemp in March with parallely laid, entire stalks by means of an old mower binder, which have been recovered and renovated by Hempner/Glaernisch. The are available to the community. Retting: Retting already took place over the winter on the stalk, the mown stalks remain parallel in the sheaves at a residual moisture of not more than 11%. Preparation of long fibre carding: Breaking: Our flywheel decortication tower is used to gently separate the long stalks into long fibres and shives and comb out the fibres. This device can be operated by hand, electrically, by water or wind, depending on the possibilities on site. Long straw decortication line €80'000 Washing: In an autoclave (a "big high pressure cooker"), the combed cardoons are washed with steam (water, pressure and heat). This removes the plant glue (pectin). The biologically enriched washing water is spread on the fields as natural fertiliser. Laundry, dyeing estimated €30'000 Drying and wrapping in bins: The washed carded plaits are air dried, re-combed and carded and wound into round bins. This semi-finished product can be sold to spinning mills. Carder e.g. Rieter estimated €50'000 |
Short Fibres for BuildingSeed:
Summer hemp with species Finola, Fedora, Felina, Erlyna, "Schöne vom Albis"..., i.e. species that grow to 2m and not higher 30-35 kg/ha sown in April, so that the weeds are also sufficiently suppressed. Harvest: Harvest of the nuts in August, straw cut to 20-40 cm, for retting laid in swaths in a tangle. In order for a common combine harvester to tendril with the hemp stalks, its mower has to be modified at an estimated cost of €100,000. For low varieties smaller than 2m, a first-generation mechanical combine harvester possibly copes better with the fibres than a modern one. Combined harvest for long textile fibres also from summer hemp: In a first harvesting pass with the mower set high, harvest the nuts first with a cut under the fruit stand. Leave the stalks standing. In a second pass with the parallel mower, mow the stalks parallel like the winter hemp. Probably this straw can also be used for long fibres. Retting: Field roasting like hay with existing machinery. Preparation of insulation material: Crushing: hammer mill and step cleaner, approx. €60'000. Nonwoven machine: Laying out the fibres to various mat thicknesses, spraying in water glass for fire protection. Price approx. €50,000 Cutting to size and wrapping: Cutting to size and wrapping in commercial mat sizes and packages. approx. €30'000 |
Nuts for Food
Seed:
Summer hemp with species Finola, Fedora, Felina, Erlyna, "Schöne vom Albis"..., i.e. species that grow to 2m and not higher. 30 kg/ha sown in April, so that the weeds are also sufficiently suppressed. Harvest: Harvest of the nuts in August, straw cut to 20-40 cm, for retting laid in swaths in a tangle. In order for a common combine harvester to tendril with the hemp stalks, its mower has to be modified at an estimated cost of €100,000. Or rather decide for the combined harvest in order to collect long fibres in summer, too (see left). Drying the nuts: The nuts must be dried immediately so that they can be stored. This requires a drying room, advantageously in cooperation with other enterprises. Pressing, shelling, grinding the nuts: Depending on their use, the nuts are peeled/cleaned to make muesli ingredients and snacks, pressed to make oil or ground to make flour. Here, too, cooperation with other companies and organisations that may already have the necessary equipment is an obvious option. Dedusting and sorting the shives: In order for the shives to meet the requirements of the builders, they have to be dedusted and sorted and packed according to size. Because the shives are a by-product of fibre production and therefore produced in very large quantities, an on-farm sorting plant is useful. Screening drum: cleaning the shives, sorting and filling: approx. €20'000 |