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Our View: Don't overreact to hemp growing Sunday May 28, 2017 at 12:01 AM A hemp farm adjacent to Oak Grove Elementary School at the western edge of Medford has school officials and apparently some parents concerned, but their fears are misplaced. Hemp is a relative of the cannabis plants that now can be legally grown, sold, possessed and consumed by adults in Oregon, but it lacks the intoxicating properties of marijuana. For years, its cultivation was banned in this country because of its similarity to marijuana, but it is now permitted again as an agricultural crop. Because it is an agricultural plant not governed by the recreational marijuana law, there is no restriction about how close it may be to a school. The property in question is outside the Medford city limits and zoned exclusive farm use. The owner says the hemp plants will be as far from the school as possible, not directly adjacent. By law, hemp cannot contain more than 0.3 percent THC — the substance in marijuana that produces the high. Hemp is a remarkably versatile plant, used to produce fiber, food and non-intoxicating CBD oil that is used to treat a variety of ailments. Hemp plants can exude an odor similar to other cannabis strains, but the farmer says the plants he is growing will be less fragrant than marijuana. School officials seem to be primarily concerned that the operation will be a distraction to students. They are over-thinking the situation. If school officials don't make a big deal out of the presence of an agricultural operation next door, it shouldn't be any more distracting than a cornfield. If children do express curiosity, educators can incorporate their response into a history lesson. Hemp played a huge role in European history, and figured prominently in Colonial America. In the days of sailing ships, hemp was the preferred fiber for making ropes and sailcloth that could withstand sea voyages. According to the Colonial Williamsburg website, historian Martin Booth has estimated that the British fleet that destroyed the Spanish Armada in 1588 was rigged with 10,000 acres of cultivated hemp. In 1632, the Virginia Assembly required every planter to grow both flax and hemp for fiber. When the Colonies began feuding with Britain, farmers were encouraged to grow hemp to compensate for the shortages of imported clothing and other items that were being boycotted. Hemp played a huge role in the Revolutionary War, outfitting naval vessels. Virginia grew 20,000 acres of it annually by the end of the war. So if students ask about the farm next door, Oak Grove teachers can explain that, if the farmer were living in Colonial times, he'd be doing his patriotic duty.