Your private hemp farm in Poland

Last update: June 5th, 2024

min. reading

Surely, more than one cannabis fan once dreamed of having real seedlings of the plant at home or in the garden. It turns out that this is possible as long as the legal requirements are met. This does not mean that anyone can plant hemp for themselves – such a possibility exists only if you obtain permission to grow the plant for your own use. What does this look like in practice? What exactly do we need to do to be able to grow hemp at home, on the balcony or in the garden? For more information, see the rest of this article.

Is the cultivation of hemp for personal consumption legal in Poland?

The cultivation of industrial hemp is strictly regulated by law in Poland and is only available to entities that have obtained a special permit to grow hemp for industrial or research purposes. Until recently, in order to obtain it, it was necessary to meet requirements regarding space for cultivation, conditions for storing the harvest and processing it for the textile, chemical, paper, plastics, food industries and many others. After the recent amendment of hemp regulations, when, among other things, domestic cultivation of medical marijuana was permitted, the possibility of growing industrial hemp for personal use was also introduced. With this change, cultivation is allowed for both farmers and individuals for personal use – within a limited range of up to 100 acres per year. It will still be necessary to apply for and obtain a cultivation permit in accordance with the national procedure.

What is the procedure for obtaining a permit to grow hemp for personal use?

The procedure for applying for a cannabis cultivation permit consists of only a few steps. There is no need to visit any office, we can submit the whole thing online or send it by mail. What specifically do we need to submit? A completed and signed application for registration of fiber hemp producers of the NEB. In addition, we need to have a scan of the invoice and the label of previously purchased certified hemp seeds that have been approved for cultivation in Poland. The list of these varieties is strictly regulated by the law, so here we cannot count on permission to grow a variety of our choice from outside the list. The main point is that the plants that will grow from certified seed are very likely not to exceed the maximum THC concentration allowed in Poland, which is 0.3%.

In addition to the application, a scan of the label and the invoice, we still need a scan of the confirmation of payment of stamp duty to the National Center for Agricultural Support in the amount of PLN 30. In the case of subsistence cultivation, we must remember to check the appropriate boxes and state the proper purposes of cultivation. These include food, veterinary, fodder, beekeeping, fertilizer, insulation and other purposes. After submitting the documents, we must wait to receive confirmation that we have been entered in the register of fiber hemp producers. Only then can we legally sow and grow hemp where we like, for example: in the garden, on the balcony or at home.

Growing hemp in the garden

Current regulations allow the cultivation of CBD-rich fiber hemp without a minimum acreage for personal use in, for example, a garden. This is a huge convenience for all hemp fans who would like to have their own plants in a garden with a small acreage. Subsistence hemp can be used for food: for example, the inflorescences and leaves can be used in the kitchen, as an addition to dishes, salads, in the form of teas, and can be used to create CBD-containing extracts. We can roast the seeds, cook them, press oil from them – they are a rich source of many nutrients. When submitting an application to obtain permission to grow hemp in the garden, we must provide the dimensions and location of the registered plot according to the land and buildings register. In addition, if we are not the owner of the plot on which our garden is located we must have written permission from the landowner for our cultivation of hemp. Also in the case of garden cultivation, we must remember to use seeds from the list approved by the NEB.

Growing hemp on the balcony

Not everyone can enjoy their own garden or even a garden. However, this does not mean that in such a situation we cannot grow hemp for our own use. The law allows us to grow on a balcony as well, without specifying a minimum number of seedlings. Individuals can have cultures of up to 1 hectare. The only barrier may be the calculation of the area of our cultivation (it’s a good idea then to have the boxes in which we grow the plants to make the calculations easier). This is because the final value of the area must be given in acres. The unquestionable advantage of having your hemp plants on the balcony is not only the microclimate and the wonderful atmosphere that the plants will create. In addition, we will have access to fresh CBD-rich herb, which we can vaporize or use as teas, as well as seeds and leaves for culinary purposes.

Growing hemp at home

Under the new regulations, individuals can grow subsistence crops with a maximum area of 100 acres. There is no minimum acreage requirement here, so theoretically we can report even the cultivation of 1 seedling for personal use. In addition, if we do not have a garden or balcony, we can report cultivation at home, such as on a windowsill or in a grow box. The latter method of cultivation is especially profitable, because with additional lighting and the right microclimate, CBD-rich varieties are capable of producing a sizable yield. Even if our home cultivation will be for consumption in the form of smoking, we indicate food purposes in the home cultivation application form. In the case of both balcony and home cultivation, we must be mindful of accurately indicating in the application the registration data. If it is an apartment in a block of apartments, we must then indicate the cadastral precinct and the plot number on which the entire block stands. In further stages of the application, the exact address and number of the apartment are indicated. In turn, when stating the size of the crop in the application, we give the summed dimensions of the area of the soil in the pots, and not the dimensions of the entire grow box, or the windowsill on which the pots stand. Adding them up and presenting them in acres can be a bit of a challenge, but with the help of online calculators you can easily calculate this.

What types of hemp can be grown in Poland for personal consumption?

When applying for a permit to grow for personal use, we need to be aware of which varieties we can grow so as not to have a conflict with the law. It should be borne in mind that current regulations only allow the cultivation of qualified varieties of fiber hemp, which have been developed for industrial purposes, while their genetics have been altered so that the level of THC in the plants does not exceed 0.3% THC, the maximum concentration allowed by law. Using the seeds of different varieties of cannabis for this purpose, which can be purchased in many online stores in Poland, would be a violation of the Criminal Code in this case. This act is associated with serious consequences, including the possibility of receiving a prison sentence. Therefore, when choosing seeds for our own hemp cultivation, we can only use the list of seeds of certified varieties that are approved by the NEB. The label of the seeds purchased should be attached to the application for a cultivation permit. Such hemp is equally rich in cannabinoids, especially CBD, and allows us to obtain valuable plant material to use for our own needs.