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    Marijuana Botany An Advanced Study: 

  The Propagation and Breeding of Distinctive Cannabis

Marijuana Botany

An Advanced Study: The Propagation and Breeding of Distinctive Cannabis

by Robert Connell Clarke

CHAPTER 2
Propagation of Cannabis

CHAPTER 3
Genetics and Breeding of Cannabis

CHAPTER 4
Maturation and Harvesting of Cannabis

Introduction

        Cannabis, commonly known in the United States as

marijuana, is a wondrous plant an ancient plant and an

ally of humanity for over ten thousand years. The pro-

found impact Cannabis has had on the development and

spread of civilization and conversely, the profound effects

we've had on the plant's evolution are just now being

discovered.

        Cannabis was one of the earliest and most important

plants placed under cultivation by prehistoric Asian

peoples. Virtually every part of the plant is usable. From

the stem comes hemp, a very long, strong fiber used to

make rope, cloth, and paper renowned for durability. The

dried leaves and flowers become the euphoriant, marijuana,

and along with the root, are also used for numerous medi-

cines. The seeds were a staple food in ancient China, one of

their major "grains." Cannabis seeds are somewhat unpala-

table and are now cultivated mainly for oil or for animal

feed. The oil is similar to linseed and is used for paint and

varnish making, fuel, and lubrication.

        Cultivated Cannabis quickly spread westward from its

native Asia and by Roman times hemp was grown in almost

every European country. In Africa, marijuana was the pre-

ferred product, smoked both ritually and for pleasure.

When the first colonists came to America they, quite

naturally, brought hemp seed with them for rope and

home-spun cloth. Hemp fiber for ships' rigging was so im-

portant to the English navy that colonists were paid boun-

ties to grow hemp and in some states, penalties were

imposed on those who didn't. Prior to the Civil War, the

hemp industry was second only to cotton in the South.

        Today, Cannabis grows around the world and is, in

fact, considered the most widely distributed of all culti-

vated plants, a testimony to the plant's tenacity and adapt-

able nature as well as to its usefulness and economic value.

Unlike many plants, Cannabis never lost the ability to

flourish without human help despite, perhaps, six millennia

of cultivation.

        Whenever ecological circumstances permit, the plants

readily "escape" cultivation by becoming weedy and estab-

lishing "wild" populations. Weedy Cannabis, descended

from the bygone hemp industry, grows in all but the more

arid areas of the United States. Unfortunately, these weeds

usually make a very poor grade marijuana.

        Such an adaptable plant, brought to a wide range of

environments, and cultivated and bred for a multitude of

products, understandably evolved a great number of dis-

tinctive strains or varieties, each one uniquely suited to

local needs and growing conditions. Many of these varieties

may be lost through extinction and hybridization unless a

concerted effort is made to preserve them. This book pro-

vides the basis for such an undertaking.

        There are likely more varieties of marijuana being

grown or held as seeds in this country than any other.

While traditional marijuana growers in Asia and Africa,

typically, grow the same, single variety their forebears

grew, American growers seek and embrace varieties from

all parts of the world. Very potent, early-flowering varieties

are especially prized because they can complete maturation

even in the northernmost states. The Cannabis stock in the

United Nations seed bank is at best, depleted and in dis-

array. American growers are in the best position to prevent

further loss of valuable varieties by saving, cataloguing, and

propagating their seeds.

        Marijuana Botany-the Propagation and Breeding of

Distinctive Cannabis is an important and most welcome

book. Its main thrust is the presentation of the scientific

and horticultural principles, along with their practical ap-

plications, necessary for the breeding and propagation of

Cannabis and in particular, marijuana. This book will appeal

not only to the professional researcher, but to the mari-

juana enthusiast or anyone with an eye to the future of

Cannabis products.

        To marijuana growers who wish to improve or up-

grade their varieties, the book is an invaluable reference.

Basic theories and practices for breeding pure stock or

hybrids, cloning, grafting, or breeding to improve quali

ties such as potency or yield, are covered in a clear, easy-

to-follow text which is liberally complemented with draw-

ings, charts, and graphs by the author.  Rob Clarke's

drawings reflect his love of Cannabis. They sensitively

capture the plant's elegance and ever-changing beauty while

being always informative and accurately rendered.

        The reader not familiar with botanical terms need not

be intimidated by a quick glance at the text. All terms are

defined when they are introduced and there is also a glos-

sary with definitions geared to usage. Anyone familiar with

the plant will easily adopt the botanical terms.

        Years from now, many a marijuana smoker may un-

knowingly be indebted to this book for the exotic varieties

that will be preserved and new ones that will be developed.

Growers will especially appreciate the expert information

on marijuana propagation and breeding so attractively and

clearly presented.



Mel Frank

author, Marijuana Growers' Guide

Preface

Turn again our captivity, 0 Lord,

as the streams in the dry land.

They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.

He that goeth forth and weepeth,

bearing precious seed,

shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,

bringing his sheaves with him.

-Psalms 126: 4-6



        Cannabis is one of the world's oldest cultivated plants.

Currently, however, Cannabis cultivation and use is illegal

or legally restricted around the globe. Despite constant

official control, Cannabis cultivation and use has spread

to every continent and nearly every nation. Cultivated and

wild Cannabis flourishes in temperate and tropical climates

worldwide. Three hundred million users form a strong un-

dercurrent beneath the flowing tide of eradication. To

judge by increasing official awareness of the economic

potentials of Cannabis, legalization seems inevitable al-

though slow. Yet as Cannabis faces eventual legalization it

is threatened by extinction. Government-sanctioned and

-supported spraying with herbicides anddd other forms of

eradication have chased ancient Cannabis strains from their

native homes.

        Cannabis has great potential for many commercial

uses. According to a recent survey of available research by

Turner, Elsohly and Boeren (1980) of the Research Insti-

tute of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Missis-

sippi, Cannabis contains 421 known compounds, and new

ones are constantly being discovered and reported. Without

further understanding of the potentials of Cannabis as a

source of fiber, fuel, food, industrial chemicals and medi-

cine it seems thoughtless to support eradication campaigns.

        World politics also threaten Cannabis. Rural Cannabis

farming cultures of the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Cen

tral America and Mrica face political unrest and open

aggression. Cannabis seeds cannot be stored forever. If they

are not planted and reproduced each year a strain could be

lost. Whales, big cats, and redwoods are all protected in

preserves established by national and international laws.

Plans must also be implemented to protect Cannabis cul-

tures and rare strains from certain extinction.

        Agribusiness is excited at the prospect of supplying

America's 20 million Cannabis users with domestically

grown commercial marijuana. As a result, development of

uniform patented hybrid strains by multinational agricul-

tural firms is inevitable. The morality of plant patent laws

has been challenged for years. For humans to recombine

and then patent the genetic material of another living or-

ganism, especially at the expense of the original organism,

certainly offends the moral sense of many concerned citi-

zens. Does the slight recombination of a plant's genetic

material by a breeder give him the right to own that organ-

ism and its offspring? Despite public resistance voiced by

conservation groups, the Plant Variety Protection Act of

1970 was passed and currently allows the patenting of 224

vegetable crops. New amendments could grant patent

holders exclusive rights for 18 years to distribute, import,

export and use for breeding purposes their newly devel-

oped strains. Similar conventions worldwide could further

threaten genetic resources. Should patented varieties of

Cannabis become reality it might be illegal to grow any

strain other than a patented variety, especially for food or

medicinal uses. Limitations could also be imposed such

that only low-THC strains would be patentable. This could

lead to restrictions on small-scale growing of Cannabis;

commercial growers could not take the chance of stray

pollinations from private plots harming a valuable seed

crop. Proponents of plant patenting claim that patents will

encourage the development of new varieties. In fact, patent

laws encourage the spread of uniform strains devoid of the

genetic diversity which allows improvements. Patent laws

have also fostered intense competition between breeders

and the suppression of research results which if made pub-

lic could speed crop improvement. A handful of large cor-

porations hold the vast majority of plant patents. These

conditions will make it impossible for cultivators of native

strains to compete with agribusiness and could lead to the

further extinction of native strains now surviving on small

farms in North America and Europe. Plant improvement

in itself presents no threat to genetic reserves. However,

the support and spread of improved strains by large cor-

porations could prove disastrous.

        Like most major crops, Cannabis originated outside

North America in still-primitive areas of the world. Thou-

sands of years ago humans began to gather seeds from wild

Cannabis and grow them in fields alongside the first culti-

vated food crops. Seeds from the best plants were saved for

planting the following season. Cannabis was spread by no-

madic tribes and by trade between cultures until it now ap-

pears in both cultivated and escaped forms in many nations.

The pressures of human and natural selection have resulted

in many distinct strains adapted to unique niches within

the ecosystem. Thus, individual Cannabis strains possess

unique gene pools containing great potential diversity. In

this diversity lies the strength of genetic inheritance. From

diverse gene pools breeders extract the desirable traits in-

corporated into new varieties. Nature also calls on the gene

pool to ensure that a strain will survive. As climate changes

and stronger pests and diseases appear, Cannabis evolves

new adaptations and defenses.

        Modern agriculture is already striving to change this

natural system. When Cannabis is legalized, the breeding

and marketing of improved varieties for commercial agri-

culture is certain. Most of the areas suitable for commercial

Cannabis cultivation already harbor their own native strains.

Improved strains with an adaptive edge will follow in the

wake of commercial agriculture and replace rare native

strains in foreign fields. Native strains will hybridize with

introduced strains through wind-borne pollen dispersal and

some genes will be squeezed from the gene pool.

        Herein lies extreme danger! Since each strain of Can-

nabis is genetically unique and contains at least a few genes

not found in other strains, if a strain becomes extinct the

unique genes are lost forever. Should genetic weaknesses

arise from excessive inbreeding of commercial strains, new

varieties might not be resistant to a previously unrecog-

nized environmental threat. A disease could spread rapidly

and wipe out entire fields simultaneously. Widespread crop

failure would result in great financial loss to the farmer and

possible extinction of entire strains.

        In 1970, to the horror of American farmers and plant

breeders, Southern corn leaf-blight (Helm in thosporium

maydis) spread quickly and unexpectedly throughout corn

crops and caught farmers off guard with no defense.

H. maydis is a fungus which causes minor rot and damage

in corn and had previously had no economic impact. How-

ever, in 1969 a virulent mutant strain of the fungus ap-

peared in Illinois, and by the end of the following season

its wind-borne spores had spread and blighted crops from

the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately

15% of America's corn crop was destroyed. In some states

over half the crop was lost.

        Fortunately the only fields badly infected were those

containing strains descended from parents of what corn

breeders called "the Texas strain." Plants descended from

parents of previously developed strains were only slightly

infected. The discovery and spread of the Texas strain had

revolutionized the corn industry. Since pollen from this

strain is sterile, female plants do not have to be detasseled

by hand or machine, saving farmers millions of dollars

annually. Unknown to corn breeders, hidden in this im-

proved strain was an extreme vulnerability to the mutant

leaf-blight fungus.



        Total disaster was avoided by the around-the clock

efforts of plant breeders to develop a commercial strain

from other than Texas plants. It still took three years to

develop and reproduce enough resistant seed to supply all

who needed it. We are also fortunate that corn breeders

could rise to the challenge and had maintained seed re-

serves for breeding. If patented hybrid strains of Cannabis

are produced and gain popularity, the same situation could

arise. Many pathogens are known to infect Cannabis and

any one of them has the potential to reach epidemic pro-

portions in a genetically uniform crop. We can not and

should not stop plant improvement programs and the use

of hybrid strains. However, we should provide a reserve of

genetic material in case it is required in the future. Breeders

can only combat future problems by relying on primitive

gene pools contained in native strains. If native gene pools

have been squeezed out by competition from patented

commercial hybrids than the breeder is helpless. The forces

of mutation and natural selection take thousands of years

to modify gene pools, while a Cannabis blight could spread

like wildfire.



        As Cannabis conservationists, we must fight the further

amendment of plant patent laws to include Cannabis, and

initiate programs immediately to collect, catalogue, and

propagate vanishing strains. Cannabis preserves are needed

where each strain can be freely cultivated in areas resemb-

ling native habitats. This will help reduce the selective

pressure of an introduced environment, and preserve the

genetic integrity of each strain. Presently such a program is

far from becoming a reality and rare strains are vanishing

faster than they can be saved. Only a handful of dedicated

researchers, cultivators, and conservationists are concerned

with the genetic fate of Cannabis. It is tragic that a plant

with such promise should be caught up in an age when ex-

tinction at the hands of humans is commonplace. Respon-

sibility is left with the few who will have the sensitivity to

end genocide and the foresight to preserve Cannabis for

future generations.

        Marijuana Botany presents the scientific knowledge

and propagation techniques used to preserve and multiply

vanishing Cannabis strains. Also included is information

concerning Cannabis genetics and breeding used to begin

plant improvement programs. It is up to the individual to

use this information thoughtfully and responsibly.

CHAPTER 2
Propagation of Cannabis

CHAPTER 3
Genetics and Breeding of Cannabis

CHAPTER 4
Maturation and Harvesting of Cannabis