Abstract
This paper will explore the origins of the cannabis plant along with a historic use going
back centuries. There will be discussion on cultivation, distribution, related wild species,
past and present uses in addition to economic importance. This paper will also elaborate on
the cultures that have used the cannabis plant, presently and historically, and define the
importance of its continued use from medicine to industrial uses.
Taxonomic information
Cannabis includes the species C. sativa, C. indica and C.ruderais and is an annual herb of
the family Cannabinaceae. It is typically a diocious, a dimorphic sexual system which
produces female (pistillate) flowers, the other bearing male flowers (staminate). The
unisexual, small, green, greenish-yellow or purple flowers of marijuana lack petals (Hill
1983).
The leaves are palmate, the fruit is small, smooth, light brownish grey and completely
filled with the seed. Cannabis is a wind-pollinated plant that produces hundreds of flowers
on large inflorescences
Origin
Cannabis has been used throughout the world for a variety of reasons even before recorded
history. The earliest find was in China and dated back 10,000 years in an archeological dig
which contained a small clay beaker using cannabis twine to decorate it (Ditchfield 2007).
Since Cannabis is one of the oldest plants cultivated by man, it is difficult to determine its
origin. Many authors place the indigenous distribution of cannabis to in central Asia,
although this is disputed. It is also the oldest known cultivated fiber plant. Hemp cloth
estimated to be more than 6,000 years old is known from Europe. It has been cultivated for
products other than fibers used in making cloth, namely for seeds from which oil is
extracted, which also has a variety of uses (Hill 1983).
Methods of cultivation
Hemp cultivation is gaining momentum with nine states having passed laws to legalize
industrial hemp farming (Campo-Flores 2014).
Historically, cannabis has been cultivated in one form or another for thousands of years
with many archeological digs uncovering pollen on the mummified body of Rameses II.
Many of the early states brought in laws from England instructing landowners to grow
hemp, even allowing people to pay for their taxes with hemp (Ditchfield 2007).
Due to the prohibition in the last several decades of cannabis use, cultivation has been
difficult. However, in the last 10 years due to pressure from scientific and environmental
bodies, cannabis is again being marketed as an industrial material and for its medicinal
value. Hemp has always been considered to be environmentally friendly due to the
