Just stumbling upon this thread in 2024. I recommend folks check out Women's Studio Workshop in Rosendale, NY, where they maintained an experimental paper fiber garden called Art Farm for many years (currently out of commission but I'd love to try to help revive it). They had great luck with kenaf and it's been written about in some papermaking magazines over the years with paper samples included in the publication. They include some of the exterior bark in their test papers to produce a lovely pink color. Chris Petrone managed that project for a long time. I'll try to grow next season here in NWA!
