Developed by Cornell, US-Grown Low THC Hemp Planting Seed for Hemp Fiber Farmers

Fiber farmers who want low THC hemp planting seed developed in the United States now have a named cultivar. Ursa Alta was bred at Cornell AgriTech in Geneva, New York, by Larry Smart and colleagues. Cornell Chronicle reported in May 2026 that it consistently tests at about 0.02% THC. That is industrial hemp, not marijuana, and it sits far under the 0.3% total THC line in the USDA AMS hemp rules.

The planting seed is US-grown. Condor Seeds in Yuma, Arizona holds a commercial license from Cornell and, as of that Chronicle account, is selling Ursa Alta. Research crops were grown on Cornell farms. The AOSCA variety review board recommended Ursa Alta, experimental designation GVA-H-22-1061, for certification as a dedicated fiber crop north of 32°N. Seed multiplication has to happen where frost will not kill the plants before they set seed. AOSCA names west Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico for that work, and the Chronicle puts the commercial seed field in Yuma.

Do not buy this low THC hemp planting seed as a grain variety. AOSCA states that frost in a typical New York season kills the plants before they mature seed. If the check you want is food grain, use the grain planting-seed guide instead.

Why Fiber Farmers Plant This Low THC Hemp Planting Seed

The profit case is a fiber contract. Cornell's breeders started from a high-THC Chinese landrace, screened seedlings with molecular markers for THC-producing genes, and kept the plants that stayed compliant and grew tall. Smart told the Chronicle the breeding program, funded primarily by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, was built to give New York growers a high-yielding compliant cultivar.

Northern trials at the University of Vermont, Michigan State University, and the University of Wisconsin produced well. Yields are lower farther south, but the Chronicle says the cultivar can produce across almost all US latitudes, including Lubbock, Texas. NC State Extension measured 9,820 lb/ac of straw for Ursa Alta at Kinston in 2023, the highest straw yield in that trial, with 1,853 lb/ac of bast, harvested September 21 at male flower. In a drought-and-hurricane 2024, Goldsboro still reached 8,643 lb/ac of straw, the high for that season. Those are small-plot numbers. Rain, planting date, and retting still decide the bale.

The Chronicle names denim-type textiles for the long outer fiber, and animal bedding plus wall insulation for the woody core. Match the acre to a buyer who wants one of those streams. A heavier stalk with no home is just a heavier stalk.

How to Place Low THC Hemp Planting Seed on a Fiber Acre

Variety first, then the drill. Ursa Alta flowers very late, which is why the stems stay in vegetative growth long enough to make fiber. That same trait is why grain fails up north.

Latitude Rules for This Low THC Hemp Planting Seed

AOSCA expects dedicated fiber performance from about 35°N to 49°N under dryland conditions, with more height where you can seed early and soil moisture is right. South of 35°N the plants may not flower even from a late-March planting, and they grow very tall for fiber or biomass. That is useful for a fiber farmer and a dead end for a grain farmer. The zero THC fiber note separates nondetectable trial rows from Cornell's 0.02% figure so the two labels are not mixed on a seed order.

THC Results on This Low THC Hemp Planting Seed

Cornell's published figure is about 0.02%. NC State reported nondetectable total THC at Kinston in 2023 and at Goldsboro in 2024, and 0.04% at Kinston in 2024. Every one of those results is under 0.3%. Nondetectable means below that lab's detection limit on that sample. It is not a promise of 0.00% on your farm, and it does not replace the pre-harvest sample your state requires.

Certified Lots of Low THC Hemp Planting Seed

Order certified hemp seed with the variety name and lot number your state will accept. AOSCA certification is the paper trail. Confirm with your offtake partner that Ursa Alta is approved. Some buyers lock genetics before they lock a price. HFGA does not charge farmers for that introduction.

Where This Low THC Hemp Planting Seed Has to Be Managed

In New York, Cornell says planting starts in mid-May and harvest falls around the second week of October. Other states move that window with day length. Copy the latitude, not a neighbor's calendar from another state.

The Fiber Season for Low THC Hemp Planting Seed

Spring planting covers field prep for most fiber regions. NC State drilled fiber entries at 1.5 million pure live seed per acre in the first week of June, after 75 lb of nitrogen preplant and another 75 lb at canopy closure. That is a trial method, not a universal rate. Use the bag tag, a soil test, and the nitrogen note as the farm starting point. Penn State Extension is the equipment reference outside New York.

Retting the Low THC Hemp Planting Seed Crop

A late fiber crop is paid only if you can mow, ret, and bale it. NC State retted stems about four weeks, until bast pulled off the hurd. Wet bales and synthetic wrap are how textile lots get rejected. The textile yarn guide is the handling list. Hurds can still have a buyer in bedding or insulation if that buyer was named before you baled.

Keep This Low THC Hemp Planting Seed Off the Grain Plan

North of 32°N, Ursa Alta is the wrong tool for a food-grain contract. Straw from a failed seed crop is not the same product as a fiber acre you planned. Price the fiber bid on commodity pricing against the crop you would have grown. Trust is the Cornell lot and a named buyer. Education is the 0.02% figure and the latitude limit. Profit is a fiber acre you can harvest on purpose.