The Cannabis Breeder's Bible Read Online Free PDF Page A

Indica
A mix of Indica and Sativa strains that incline towards Indica characteristics.
Mostly Sativa
A mix of Sativa and Indica strains that incline towards Sativa characteristics.
Mostly Ruderalis
A mix of Ruderalis with either Indica or Sativa strains that incline towards Ruderalis characteristics.
Indica/Sativa
A strain that displays equal amounts of Indica and Sativa characteristics.
Indica/Ruderalis
A strain that displays equal amounts of Indica and Ruderalis characteristics.
Sativa/Ruderalis
A strain that displays equal amounts of Sativa and Ruderalis characteristics.
Indica/Sativa/ Ruderalis
A strain that displays equal amounts of Indica, Sativa and Ruderalis characteristics.
     
    Cannabis Ruderalis is not very popular with growers because of its auto-flowering properties ( CGB, p. 17). This means that the species does not flower according to the photoperiod but flowers according to age and maturity. Growers like to control the flowering properties of their plants and so breeders rarely ever use Ruderalis in breeding projects and seed banks rarely ever stock Ruderalis genetics.
     
    It is for this reason that Indica and Sativa strains are not mixed with Ruderalis. In fact, it is now very rare to find Ruderalis strains sold by seed banks because of the strains’ unpopularity among cultivators. This means that there are truly only five types of cannabis species subsets being produced by breeders. These are: Pure Indica, Pure Sativa, Mostly Indica, Mostly Sativa and Indica/Sativa varieties.

    THE CANNABIS SPECIES PROBLEM 3
    Because US and other legislations have made specific reference to Cannabis Sativa L. as a proscribed plant, many cannabis cultivators have turned to the use of Cannabis Indica and Cannabis Ruderalis as non-proscribed cannabis species to beat the law. This has resulted in the courts having to dismiss many cases against defendants because of this technicality. R. E. Schultes of Harvard University began testifying in cases in 1972 to show that cannabis could be found in three distinctive species types. A number of respectable botanists including William A. Emboden, also testified in court as to the distinct separate species of cannabis.
     
    In 1975, Ernest Small, while working for the “Canadian Government Commission of Inquiry into the Non-Medical Use of Drugs” was asked to combat this problem by linking Cannabis Indica and Cannabis Ruderalis as just variations of Cannabis Sativa L. and not as separate species. The debate still continues today although it is generally recognized by most cannabis researchers and growers that there are indeed three very distinct species of cannabis.
     
    Carl von Linné (1707 – 78) or Carolus Linnaeus (Latinized version) was a Swedish botanist and founder of modern systematic botany and zoology. He devised a classification system for flowering plants based on stamen type and number of pistils, and became the authority to whom collectors all over the world sent specimens. He described over 7,000 plants, introducing binomial Latin names, although his classification was later superseded by that of Antoine Jussieu. He set out his system in Systema Naturae (1735) and other works which are internationally recognized as the starting points for botanical nomenclature respectively. In 1753 he recognized only one species of Cannabis—Cannabis Sativa L.
     
    French naturalist Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck (1744 – 1829) was an early proponent of organic evolution. Darwin would later draw much from his work. In 1783, Lamarck discovered Cannabis Indica by way of samples that had been sent from India to him by a man named Sonnerat. He published his findings on Cannabis Indica in 1785.
     
    In 1924 the Russian botanist Janischevsky discovered a new species of cannabis growing in Southeastern Russia that he called Cannabis Ruderalis.
     
    The discoveries of Lamarck and Janischevsky contradicted Linnaeus’s accepted view that cannabis was a monotypic genus—that genus being Cannabis