2025/11/20 by Carla C. Caballero Mejia, Mark H. Brand, Jessica D. Lubell-Brand · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #Berry genetics and cultivation research #Bioenergy crop production and management #Composting and Vermicomposting Techniques
paper · doi:10.21273/hortsci19072-25
openalex created_date 2025/11/20 · openalex publication_date 2025/11/20 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/26
Hemp ( Cannabis sativa ) hurd fiber is a by-product of various hemp industries, including grain, textile, and medicinal. The first use of hurd as a container substrate was in research on greenhouse crops; it has not been tested on landscape plants. We evaluated the performance of three shrubs [forsythia ( Forsythia ×intermedia ), northern bayberry ( Morella pensylvanica , Bobbee™, ‘Bobzam’), and Siberian cypress ( Microbiota decussata )] and two herbaceous perennials [bee balm ( Monarda didyma , Sugar Buzz ® , ‘Grape Gumball’) and switchgrass ( Panicum virgatum , Ruby Ribbons™, ‘RR1’ ), grown in standard nursery medium with hurd in place of peatmoss. The control medium consisted of pine bark, peat, and sand at 4:2:1. Experimental media had 50% or 100% of the peat portion of the control medium replaced with hurd. For all shrub species, plants grown in media containing hurd were of similar size and visually indistinguishable from plants grown in control medium. Plants of switchgrass grown in all three media were visually and physically similar, but shoot weight was slightly greater for plants in control medium. Bee balm plants grown in control medium had a slightly greater shoot weight and total number of inflorescences than plants grown in media containing hurd. These differences may be attributable to nitrogen immobilization or less nutrient retention in the media containing hurd, resulting from the greater porosity of hurd compared with peat. Root area was greater for switchgrass and bee balm grown in hurd replacement media than control medium, possibly because hurd retains less water and nutrients to sustain shoot growth beyond a certain threshold, at which point plants redirect the allocation of photosynthates to the roots. Hemp hurd fiber is a promising alternative substrate for the container production of landscape plants and we expect that many species would perform well in media containing hurd.