Species of annual herb reaching 5 m (16 feet) in height, native to temperate zones of central Asia, but widely cultivated elsewhere. Cultivation for fiber is recorded in China as early as 2800 BCE; it was cultivated throughout Europe by the Middle Ages. It was planted in South and North America by the 16th and 17th centuries. Fibers from the stems are used for making cloth and other products, seed is used as a caged-bird feed, and the flowers, leaves, stems, and seeds, which contain psychoactive chemical compounds, are consumed by humans for recreational, medicinal, and spiritual purposes.
