Cannabis sativa

Cannabis sativa HEMP, MARIJUANA

Higher Taxonomy

Family: Cannabaceae

Common Name: HEMP FAMILY
Habit: Tree, shrub, or erect or twining perennial herb; dioecious or flowers staminate and bisexual, wind-pollinated; epidermis with stiff hairs, glandular or not; sap watery. Leaf: petioled; simple, unlobed or palmately lobed or compound, all alternate or lower opposite. Inflorescence: terminal or axillary, unisexual or with both male and bisexual flowers. Flower: perianth parts 4--6, free or fused; stamens 0 or 4--6; ovary 0 or 1, superior, chamber 1, ovule 1, style 1, short, stigmas 2, slender, plumose. Fruit: drupe or achene, occasionally +- enclosed in persistent perianth.
Genera In Family: 11 genera, +- 100 species: temperate, tropical areas worldwide.
eFlora Treatment Author: Alan T. Whittemore, except as noted
Scientific Editor: Douglas H. Goldman, Bruce G. Baldwin.

Genus: Cannabis

View Description

Common Name: HEMP

Etymology: (Greek, Latin: hemp)
eFlora Treatment Author: Alan T. Whittemore & Elizabeth McClintock
Reference: Small & Cronquist 1976 Taxon 25:405--435

Cannabis sativa L.

NATURALIZED
Habit: Annual, erect; hairs unbranched. Stem: branched, < 4 m; inner bark fibrous. Leaf: lower opposite, palmately compound, upper alternate, palmately compound to occasionally simple; leaflets generally 3--7, < 15 cm, narrowly lanceolate, coarsely serrate. Staminate Inflorescence: panicle- or spike-like, > 15 cm, +- open. Pistillate Inflorescence: erect to spreading, > 2 cm, dense. Pistillate Flower: perianth parts fused into a short, unlobed tube or ring. Fruit: achene, 1--2 mm, generally +- enclosed in persistent perianth.
Ecology: Disturbed areas; Elevation: generally < 600 m. Bioregional Distribution: CA-FP; Distribution Outside California: possibly native to central Asia, but cultivated since pre-history. Flowering Time: Jun--Oct Note: Highly variable. Psychoactive resin (THC) concentrated in pistillate inflorescences; used in medicine; stem fibers for rope, fabric, paper, etc.
Synonyms: Cannabis indica Lam.
Unabridged Note: It is very difficult to ascertain the true range for Cannabis sativa as a naturalized plant, since it is often illicitly planted in wild areas. The great majority of collections from California come from elevations below 600 m, but very few specimens from higher elevations (up to nearly 1500 m) have been seen. It is questionable whether the sp. is really established in California at elevations above 600 m.
Jepson eFlora Author: Alan T. Whittemore & Elizabeth McClintock
Reference: Small & Cronquist 1976 Taxon 25:405--435
Index of California Plant Names (ICPN; linked via the Jepson Online Interchange)

Previous taxon: Cannabis
Next taxon: Celtis

Botanical illustration including Cannabis sativa

Please use this Google Form for Contact/Feedback

Citation for this treatment: Alan T. Whittemore & Elizabeth McClintock 2012, Cannabis sativa, in Jepson Flora Project (eds.) Jepson eFlora, https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=17076, accessed on April 24, 2024.

Citation for the whole project: Jepson Flora Project (eds.) 2024, Jepson eFlora, https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/, accessed on April 24, 2024.

Cannabis sativa

Cannabis sativa

More photos of Cannabis sativa
in CalPhotos

Geographic subdivisions for Cannabis sativa: CA-FP	MAP CONTROLS 1. You can change the display of the base map layer control box in the upper right-hand corner. 2. County and Jepson Region polygons can be turned off and on using the check boxes.

(Note: any qualifiers in the taxon distribution description, such as 'northern', 'southern', 'adjacent' etc., are not reflected in the map above, and in some cases indication of a taxon in a subdivision is based on a single collection or author-verified occurence).	Data provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria. MAP LEGEND View all CCH records All markers link to CCH specimen records. The original determination is shown in the popup window. Blue markers indicate specimens that map to one of the expected Jepson geographic subdivisions (see left map). Purple markers indicate specimens collected from a garden, greenhouse, or other non-wild location. Yellow markers indicate records that may provide evidence for eFlora range revision or may have georeferencing or identification issues. READ ABOUT YELLOW FLAGS CCH collections by month Duplicates counted once; synonyms included. Species do not include records of infraspecific taxa, if there are more than 1 infraspecific taxon in CA. Blue line denotes eFlora flowering time (fruiting time in some monocot genera).