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CANNABIS SATIVA L.
People have cultivated Cannabis sativa throughout recorded history as a source of food, medicine, industrial fibre, fuel, and as a catalyst for social, religious and/or spiritual expression. Each part of the plant is harvested differently, depending on the purpose of its use. Cannabis seeds are rich in essential fatty acids (Omega acids) and amino acids and are therefore an extremely rich source of nutrition for humans and some animals. The seeds are pressed to extract hempseed oil which can also be used for cooking, lamps, lacquers, or even paints.
The flowers of the female plant and their surrounding small leaves contain resin glands known as trichomes which secrete chemical compounds called cannabinoids, terpenoids and flavonoids among others. These compounds are perfectly compatible with cannabinoid receptors situated on cells throughout the human body and which form the endocannabinoid system in human beings and all other living creatures.
When used medicinally, preparations/extracts of mature flowers, sometimes leaves, roots and preparations of the resin e.g. Hashish, Keif or Cannabis oil, are applied topically (to the skin), sub-lingually (under the tongue), by oral ingestion, by rectal or vaginal insertion, vaporizing and/or smoking, depending on what is being treated. Tinctures, teas, and ointments have been common preparations throughout known human history.
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The seeds and bigger fan leaves of the plant are highly nutritious, although they do not contain the glands which produce the resin that the plant is famous for. They are known to contribute to the alleviation of certain illnesses through supporting the body nutritionally, and are used as feed/fodder for animals and birds.
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PLANT PHYSIOLOGY
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The flowers of the female plant are arranged in racemes and can produce hundreds of seeds. Male plants shed their pollen and die several weeks prior to seed ripening on the female plants.
Although genetic factors dispose a plant to become male or female, environmental factors including the diurnal light cycle can alter sexual expression.
Naturally occurring monoecious plants, with both male and female parts, are either sterile or fertile but artificially induced "hermaphrodites" (a commonly used misnomer) can have fully functional reproductive organs. "Feminized" seed sold by many commercial seed suppliers are derived from artificially "hermaphroditic" females that lack the male gene, or by treating the plants with hormones or silver thiosulfate.
In the case of production related to medicinal and social use of Cannabis, the process of "cloning", or taking cuttings from a mother plant, provides the grower with DNA identical female plants eliminating the need for seeds for the growing process, and more importantly, retaining genetic purity for medicine specifications.
A Cannabis plant in the vegetative growth phase of its life requires more than 12–13 hours of light per day to stay vegetative. Flowering usually occurs when darkness equals at least 12 hours per day. The flowering cycle can last anywhere between nine to fifteen weeks, depending on the strain and environmental conditions.
In soil, the optimum pH for the plant is 6.3 to 6.8. In hydroponic growing, the nutrient solution is best at 5.2 to 5.8, making Cannabis well-suited to hydroponics because this pH range is hostile to most bacteria and fungi.
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CULTIVARS
Broadly, there are three main cultivar groups of cannabis that are cultivated today:
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Cultivars primarily cultivated for their fibre and bast, characterised by long stems and little branching known as industrial hemp.
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Cultivars grown for seed which can be eaten entirely raw or from which hemp oil is extracted.
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Cultivars grown for medicinal or recreational purposes which have high resin content.
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Reference: Schaffner, John H. (1921-01-01). "Influence of Environment on Sexual Expression in Hemp". Botanical Gazette 71 (3): 197–219.
A major factor in successful Cannabis medicine practice is the type, genetic strain and quality Cannabis used.
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