Hemp and Flax Biomass and Fiber Production and Linseed Yield in Irrigated Mediterranean Conditions

Abstract Field trials were conducted in the irrigated areas of the Ebro valley, one of the most important irrigated areas in Spain, in order to study the feasibility of flax and hemp as possible alternative crops. Field experiments were established in 2000 and 2001, and three varieties of hemp and five of flax (two fiber types and three oilseed types) were compared under irrigation. Stem dry matter yields for hemp averaged 9,118 kg ha−1 and 7,635 kg ha−1, with average bark contents of 32.2% and 22.5%, in 2000 and 2001, respectively. Straw yields and bark contents for flax averaged 4,790 and 4,259 kg ha−1 and 27.0 and 20.1%, in 2000 and 2001, respectively, whereas average linseed yields were of 1,741 and 468 kg ha−1, in 2000 and in 2001, respectively. The results suggest that in the irrigated conditions of the Ebro valley hemp seems a more appropriate crop than flax for the pulp paper industry, although in order to obtain higher yields earlier sowing and longer cycle varieties should be studied.