Hemp and Safflower Field Day 2026

Innovation & Diversity in Baden-Württemberg

 

We cordially invite you to learn more about our current work and research on hemp and safflower. Take this opportunity to exchange ideas, discuss innovative approaches, and talk directly with our staff.

 

Date: Thursday, July 23, 2026

Time:

  • 1:00-3:00 PM: Presentations in Seminar room S09, Fruwirthstraße 21, 70599 Stuttgart
  • from 3:15 PM: Field tour at Heidfeldhof, Filderhauptstraße 201, 70599 Stuttgart-Plieningen

Location: University of Hohenheim, state plant breeding institute, Stuttgart, Germany

 

A shuttle service will be provided between Seminar room S09 and Heidfeldhof for visitors of the field day.

To help us plan, please register in advance. Participitation is free of charge.

Further information will be published here shortly 

 

Register Now

 

Why you should attend 

  • Learn about new crops with future potential
  • Receive practical cultivation recommendations
  • Engage in direct dialogue with researchers and experts on-site
  • Discover opportunities for income, biodiversity, and climate protection


What to expect on site

  • Presentation of current hemp and safflower trials
  • Insights into cultivation, variety selection, and potential uses
  • Discussion with scientists and practitioners
  • Networking with farmers, advisors, and processors


Who is the field day intended for

  • Farmers
  • Agricultural advisors
  • Research & education
  • Processing companies

Hemp

Hemp in Practical Cultivation – A Traditional Raw Material with Future Potential

Hemp in Practical Cultivation – A Traditional Raw Material with Future Potential

Hemp is currently experiencing a renaissance – as a sustainable crop with diverse applications in agriculture, construction, the textile industry, and food. This robust plant stands out for its low cultivation requirements, rapid early development, and its positive effects on soil structure and crop rotation.

For agricultural businesses, hemp offers interesting opportunities: short growing periods, site-adapted varieties, low pesticide requirements, and a wide range of uses – from fiber and seed to whole-plant utilization.

As part of our Hemp Field Day, we aim to provide practical insights into current variety trials, cultivation methods, and utilization concepts. Key features include demonstration plots, trial results from the region, and discussions with breeders, farmers, and processors.

Whether you're a practitioner, advisor, researcher, or simply curious – you're warmly invited to explore the potential of this fascinating crop on site.

Benefits of Hemp Cultivation from the EU’s Perspective

Carbon Storage

One hectare of hemp captures 9–15 tons of CO₂ — comparable to a young forest, but in just 5 months.

Interrupting Disease Cycles

Hemp disrupts disease cycles in crop rotation and suppresses weeds through rapid early growth.

Preventing Soil Erosion

Dense hemp leaves cover the soil early, reduce water loss, and prevent erosion.

Biodiversity

Hemp provides pollen in summer months, food for wildlife, and shelter for birds.

Low Pesticide Use

Hemp rarely needs pesticides — natural predators help control pests effectively.

Source: EU Agriculture

Available Varieties On Site:

Bialobrezeskie
Diocia 88
Djumbo 20
Earlina 8FC
Estica
Fedora 17
Felina 32
Finola
Finola 2
Fiona
Futura 83
Henola
Kompolti
Mona 16
Nashinoide 15
Ostara 9
Santhica 27
Uso 31

Safflower

Safflower: a versatile and ancient crop with new opportunities?

Safflower is an ancient crop with versatile potential. This oilseed plant is drought-tolerant and, as a flowering plant, enhances the landscape. This makes safflower a particularly attractive crop in the context of climate adaptation, biodiversity, and sustainable crop rotations.

During the field day, we will show you our current breeding efforts, promising early genotypes, and the nationwide safflower trial. On the demonstration plots, you can directly compare different safflower varieties and get a firsthand look at the plants.

 

Demonstration plots of the following safflower varieties have been planted:

  • Sabina, historical variety
  • Salem, breeder: Streng-Engelen GmbH & Co. KG
  • Calin, breeder: exsemine GmbH
  • Catima, breeder: Gert Horn
  • Ara, breeder: Research Institute for Fodder Crops, Ltd. Troubsko
  • Tereza, breeder: Research Institute for Fodder Crops, Ltd. Troubsko
  • Dornburger, TLLR
  • Finch
  • and many more

 

Exchange and cooperation

The field day offers an opportunity to discuss the breeding, cultivation, processing, and marketing of safflower. Together with researchers, practitioners, and industry representatives, we would like to explore future directions for the further development of this crop.

The field day not only offers technical insights, but also the opportunity to network along the entire value chain. Whether breeding, cultivation, processing or marketing – safflower opens up new perspectives for sustainable agriculture. Together, we want to derive breeding goals, further develop cultivation techniques and plant protection, and discuss market strategies and utilisation pathways. Take this opportunity to meet stakeholders from research, practice and industry and develop concrete starting points for cooperation.

 For more information on safflower as a crop, please visit our website: 

https://lsa.uni-hohenheim.de/saflor

Pictures

Breeding of Safflower (CarthBreed)

CarthBreed is a collaborative research project aimed at establishing a modern, site-adapted breeding programme for safflower in Germany. The goal is to develop robust, high-yielding and ecologically suitable varieties using modern methods such as speed breeding, genomics and rapid analysis. In this way, CarthBreed is making an active contribution to the implementation of the 2035 arable farming strategy, particularly in the areas of plant breeding, climate adaptation and crop rotation diversity.

 

 

contact persons:

  • Kim Steige
  • Hans Peter Maurer

 

project partner:

  • exsemine GmbH, Gert Horn
  • Streng-Engelen GmbH & Co. KG, Dr. Carsten Reinbrecht

 

funding:

The project is supported by funds of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity (BMLEH) based on a decision of the Parliament of the Federal Republic of Germany via the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE) under the innovation support programme.

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