In Europe, attention is devoted to the methods of obtaining nettle fibers for technical textiles. Several new nettle plant clones have been created. From wild nettles they differ in the higher number of fibers. The nettle can be grown for 10 – 15 years in one place without much care. The wild nettle grows in Latvia very well. Therefore, the task has been to determine the possibility of cultivating nettle in Latvia for fiber needs. It has been determined that the obtained yield of fiber is less than that of flax and hemp. Experimental results have shown that the bast content in nettle straws is approximately 20%. Average fiber strength is similar to that of flax and hemp fiber – 33-58 cN/tex. It has been also determined that from older plants more fibers can be obtained and they are even stronger. The increase in the plant spacing distance not only decreases the number of nettle fibers but also their mechanical properties.