Evolution of Cannabis Plant
- If we want to determine at least some accuracy the original occurrence of cannabis, we need to consider the climatic conditions necessary for its flourishing, look at the first fossil records and also the first evidence of the historical use of this plant by man
Medical cannabisit is one of the first plants ever to be actively cultivated by mankind. With its deep history, we have plenty of information about its use by all sorts of cultures and people from all over the world. A number of historical documents and archaeological findings help us to learn how, why and when cannabis appeared in different parts of our Earth. But the whole thing becomes much more hazy the moment we want to get to know the true origin and evolution of this versatile herb .
We currently have no fossilrecord the absolutely first cannabis plants. Cannabis has always been a valuable subject of commerce and as such has spread widely throughout the world during the migration of humanity, which is another reason why it is difficult for us to focus its true beginning.
Lack of solid incomeThus, caries cause researchers to approach the research deductively and make use of the knowledge of other related plants that we canTo help create a meaningful theory on how and why medical cannabis actually originated.
What conditions does cannabis need to flourish?
If we want to determine the evolutionary source of cannabis at least with some precision, we must first look at what the environmental conditions in which it performs best look. For example, the amount of sunlight, temperature, humidity, and combinations of all parameters in which cannabis thrives. For example, we know that cannabis is a plant loving sunlight and higher temperatures. With such knowledge, we can quite safely assume that cannabis originally developed in a more open type of environment that lacks a higher stand casting much shade.
We also know that cannabis responds to the photoperiod - during longer periodsThe days of spring and summer are growing furiously, while during the shorter days and diminishing nights it begins to bloom. In addition, cannabis does not like too much cold, but if it has enough water and nutrients, it can survive a period of extreme heat.
While staying in wet conditionscannabis can not, the over-dry environment does not testify to it. Furthermore, too-humid environments are rich in invasive fungi against which cannabis is poorly prevented - it needs soil that drains moisture well.
So if we take the potand from all these facts, we can make a pretty clear picture of the environment in which cannabis was originally a mild northern climate where they are hot, humid summers, and where quietly pursues to finish 4-6 month life cycle in sandy, alluvial soils, for example around watercourses.
When did the first cannabis originate?
We have almost answered the question of where roughly cannabis originated, so we can now address the question of when cannabis first appeared on the ground. Since there is a major lack of fossil records, we need to look at plants that are related to cannabis. Here, too, we come to a certain controversy, as the taxonomic designation of cannabis varies from botanist to botany.
He was the first to include cannabis and ishimsister plant hops to plant family Cannabaceae austrian botanist Stephan Endlicher in 1837. Later, cannabis was transferred by other botanists to the Urticaceae - the nettle family and subsequently to the fig family - Moraceae.
However, in 2003, an article was published in the New Zealand official botany journal by John McPartland and Judith Nicholson, who explored the relationship between plants based on parasite similarity. The authors found that 7 parasites, which are active in cannabis plants, also occur in the family of Urticaceae plants, with none of these 7 occurring in Moraceae. Thus, based on these data, we can tthe so-called Fahrenholzs rule, that Cannabaceae evolved from or together Urticaeae .
The oldest of the currently available fossil records suggests that the Urticaeae family evolved during the oligocene, which began approximately 34 million years ago. Hops the closest cannabis sibling, has fully developed 6.38 million years ago. So we can roughly assume that cannabis has developed sometime between the years 34 and 6.38 million years ago.
Where did cannabis originally develop?
Now we need to look at the historical and archaeological traces that tell us where and when cannabis was first used by humans. One recent discovery is, for example, the Neolithic Building Area in Taiwan dating back to 12,000 BCBC, where she was pottery decorated with embossed hemp string found . Furthermore, in 2003, 2 were discovered in northwest China, specifically Xinjiang, A 700-year-old tomb with a mummified shaman, with a few remnants of hemp seeds and leaves.
Hicannabis use is also well documented inancient sacred texts of Hinduism, Atharva Vedathat came about 1,400 to 2,000 years ago.
There is also evidence of the ancient Pit culture from todays Northern Europe and its usecannabis for both its psychoactive properties and the raw material for rigging and that about 3,000 years BC. Another evidence suggests that the people ancient Egypt began to use cannabis about 1,550 years agoour year. However, for the rest of Africa, cannabis was introduced much later. In the New World, cannabis appeared only with the arrival of European colonists.
Allthis evidence thus logically leads us to conclude that cannabis was originally developed in Eurasia. In addition, bearing in mind that the European type of wild cannabis is not as psychoactive as its varieties from South and East Asia, we can assume that the very first cannabis originated in Central Asia, from where it continued to expand into the world.
The natural occurrence of cannabis is boringto change its climate change, to determine its exact location original occurrence hence, it is obscene. Some of the theories speak in particular, the northern area of Tian Shan or the Altai Mountains.
Taking into account our knowledge of the cannabis climatic requirements and the first historical records of its use by humans, the theory of indigenous occurrence in Central Asia offers the most reasonable explanation so far. Probably 120,000 years ago, the first people migrating from Africa came across.
The rest is, as they say, history.