Hemp is strong. We mean really strong. Four to five times stronger than cotton. Hemp rope is legendarily strong. Sailor used sails made of hemp canvas (it’s called canvas from the root word cannabis) because they needed something strong, durable and that performed well even if wet.
Hemp fabric is made from the stalk of the plant, which allows the individual fibres to be quite a bit longer than cotton or wool fibre tends to be. This length, along with the fact that the fibres are designed to be strong enough to support the entire plant means that when hemp fibre is woven into textiles, the result is an incredibly strong fabric. Silk is also incredibly strong but is unfortunately also very expensive due to the more elaborate processes involved in harvesting it.
When you combine the strength of hemp with its antimicrobial properties, what you are left with is a textile that is going to age extremely well. It doesn’t break down, tear, or become smelly. It breaks in and just gets softer with time while retaining its inherent durability and strength.
When we say hemp is strong we are also talking about the plant's ability to grow in adverse climates. It requires a fraction of the water needed to grow, with some estimates suggesting as little as a tenth of the water used to grow hemp compared to cotton, which gives it the ability to grow in dry, arid climates. It can grow in short growing seasons, giving it the ability to grow in northern climates, and requires virtually no fertilizers to grow which allows fringe lands and areas with less fertile farmland to grow it. It’s a tough plant, that literally has the ability to grow pretty much anywhere grass is grown.
If you are the type of person who likes their clothing and goods to last, hemp is a very logical choice over cotton. If you are the type of person who wants the planet to thrive and last, hemp textiles are a very good choice…