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Editor's Note: In recognition of Hemp History Week http://hemphistoryweek.com), this week's Birding Wire feature is provided by Paul Baicich, co-author of 'Feeding Wild Birds in America' and editor of Great Birding Projects http://www.greatbirdingprojects.com). JRA

In the winter of 1895-96, bird-feeding pioneer, Elizabeth B. Davenport of Brattleboro, Vermont, fed the birds at her window a unique high-oil seed: hemp. Full of fat, protein, and carbohydrates, hemp seed was widely available at the time at feed and grain stores. Hemp was quickly adopted by early wild bird feeding proponents, and it became a main ingredient in their birdseed mixes.

Of course, hemp, Cannabis sativa, is also used as a recreational or medical drug, marijuana. But there are enormous differences between "industrial hemp" and "psychoactive hemp." Some strains of the plant can have almost none of the psychoactive chemical; others may possess an abundance of it. Industrial hemp usually has less than 0.3 to 1.0 percent THC (delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol).

While the praise for hemp as birdseed may have started over 120 years ago, the enthusiasm for the highly nutritional seed continued for decades. Discussing "satisfactory foods" for wild birds in the 1941 book, Audubon Guide to Attracting Birds, Roger Tory Peterson called hemp, a favorite with seed-eaters: "In a mixture of cracked corn and smaller seeds, hemp always goes first."

However, the passage of the federal Marijuana Tax Act in 1937 complicated things. And except for the short-lived USDA-promoted "Hemp for Victory" campaign of WWII - to provide cordage, rope, and cloth for the war effort - hemp slipped away as a birdseed of consequence in the U.S. The Controlled Substances Ace of 1970 didn't make things any easier.

Today, organized business groups and even state and federal agencies and lawmakers have been working on ways to revive industrial hemp production in the U.S. (Industrial hemp can play a role in health food and body care products, as well as ecofriendly textiles, clothing, auto parts, building materials, and, of course, birdseed. Hemp also shows some promise for regenerating depleted soils, sequestering carbon dioxide, and preventing erosion.) In fact, there are also some sections of the most recent Farm Bill that make hemp exploration - even including bird seed use - possible.

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In any case, Vote Hemp, the organization working to change state and federal laws to allow commercial hemp farming, has followed 2016's growth of hemp crops (planted in 15 states), universities conducting research on hemp cultivation (30), and increases in state hemp licenses issued across the country (817). Industrial hemp cultivation is now legal in 32 states, which have lifted restrictions on hemp farming and may license farmers to grow hemp in accordance with Sec. 7606 of the Farm Bill.

In light of these developments, there will be a number of on-line and in-place physical events to celebrate the http://hemphistoryweek.com/about/>Eighth Annual Hemp History Week, 5-11 June. These activities will focus on hemp as a fiber and oil-seed crop with deep roots in American history, exploring ways to embrace the innovative and sustainable potential of non-drug, industrial hemp.

If this pace keeps up, hemp might still become, once again, a standard in bird feeding. Millions of Americans who feed wild birds may again be able to visit local stores to pick up bags of hemp seed marked "grown in the USA."