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What are the origins of Jamaican marijuana?

that is awesome, i like how even strains that originated from similar sources can grow with different traits if allowed to be grown in a different region or by a different group of people for a long enough time.

this to me is what makes cannabis beautiful, how different people can like different things and over time they can achieve different results, variety
 

ctg

Well-known member
Veteran
I think we can guess that cannabis wasn’t indigenous in many places but I would wager it’s been here on this planet way longer than man and may have been on many parts of Pangea when the continents split. At the very least Hawaii has some outstanding heirlooms that have been passed down through generations of growers. When did they arrive in Hawaii is anyone’s guess but kind bud has come from the islands for as long as I can remember
 
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TanzanianMagic

Well-known member
Veteran
Jamaican was from India and Africa there was no Cannabis in the Americas pre 1492, it all came from elsewhere.
Ultimately cannabis likely came from the Himalayas. However, it spread out to China, India, Ancient Egypt about 4,000 years ago.

Cannabis is mentioned in the oldest known medical texts, the Ramesseum III and Eber papyri, from 1700 and 1600 BC. (Which stands in sharp contrast to the drug war lie that cannabis has 'no accepted medical use' - it's mentioned for that purpose for thousands of years.)


There have been hajjes to the Mecca for 1,500 years. People are likely to have brought their own weed with them and brought new weed back.

There was travel to the Americas prior to 1492. Mansa Musa is reported to have departed for the Americas with 2000 ships in 1311. There may well have been earlier travel across the Atlantic, because of the North and South Equatorial currents takes boats from West Africa to the Caribbean and Brazil respectively pretty much automaticaly - which is how Columbus made it across the Atlantic too. When he did, he reported the presence of Black African people who were already there.


At the same time, in the 19th century, there was a move to replace lost slave labor with the coolie system, which is why there are now South Asian communities across the Caribbean and Africa, even Indonesia (Surinam).

So at the same time, it could be that what are now local landraces, are isolated old Indian strains of the 19th century - which may have become lost in India itself.
 
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burningfire

Well-known member
Veteran
Ultimately cannabis likely came from the Himalayas. However, it spread out to China, India, Ancient Egypt about 4,000 years ago.

Cannabis is mentioned in the oldest known medical texts, the Ramesseum III and Eber papyri, from 1700 and 1600 BC. (Which stands in sharp contrast to the drug war lie that cannabis has 'no accepted medical use' - it's mentioned for that purpose for thousands of years.)
There have been hajjes to the Mecca for 1,500 years. People are likely to have brought their own weed with them and brought new weed back.

There was travel to the Americas prior to 1492. Mansa Musa is reported to have departed for the Americas with 2000 ships in 1311. There may well have been earlier travel across the Atlantic, because of the North and South Equatorial currents takes boats from West Africa to the Caribbean and Brazil respectively pretty much automaticaly - which is how Columbus made it across the Atlantic too. When he did, he reported the presence of Black African people who were already there.
At the same time, in the 19th century, there was a move to replace lost slave labor with the coolie system, which is why there are now South Asian communities across the Caribbean and Africa, even Indonesia (Surinam).

So at the same time, it could be that what are now local landraces, are isolated old Indian strains of the 19th century - which may have become lost in India itself.


I'm trying to find actual written proof of what you say here, especially the part about columbus, I can't find any mention of the quote attributed to him.



I don't believe there was cannabis before the columbus landed in "america". There's the theory that slaves brought it with them, If you think about it, if people were poached and put in holds they probably couldn't find the time to gather seeds.. but I don't think most slaves were held captive until their arrival. Their captors most likely sold them a dream in a new "world" and when they arrived pulled a bait and switch.
 

Sam_Skunkman

"RESIN BREEDER"
Moderator
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If there was Cannabis in the Americas pre Columbus there where are the pollen, stem or seed remains? Everywhere Cannabis was traditionally in the old world you can find both pollen and seed remains, everywhere....
But none have been found in the Americas that is pre Columbus, not one.
Cannabis is to useful a plant to not be used it just has to many uses and man would not ignore it.

-SamS
 

Donald Mallard

el duck
Veteran
I think we can guess that cannabis wasn’t indigenous in many places but I would wager it’s been here on this planet way longer than man and may have been on many parts of Pangea when the continents split. At the very least Hawaii has some outstanding heirlooms that have been passed down through generations of growers. When did they arrive in Hawaii is anyone’s guess but kind bud has come from the islands for as long as I can remember
im not sure on your pangea bit ,
but i am sure cannabis is a plant that has been with man for some time ,
a bit like the plant that attracted the bee by using delicious nectar , cannabis has done the same thing using man ....
 

Donald Mallard

el duck
Veteran
i thought jamaican weed was pretty average with the samples i had during my visit there,
that kinda weed u can smoke in a joint all day ...



im sure there are better samples , but doubting much selection or preservation is done ,
its about producing weed for money , not about preserving some landrace there ..
 

Gry

Well-known member
Veteran
Can recall it being a very welcome step up from the regular Mexican cannabis back in the early 70s. Quality wise, it fit between the Mexican and the Columbian real nice.

It shared qualities the Columbian had, at near the price of Mexican cannabis.
 
W

Water-

I'm trying to find actual written proof of what you say here, especially the part about columbus, I can't find any mention of the quote attributed to him.



I don't believe there was cannabis before the columbus landed in "america". There's the theory that slaves brought it with them, If you think about it, if people were poached and put in holds they probably couldn't find the time to gather seeds.. but I don't think most slaves were held captive until their arrival. Their captors most likely sold them a dream in a new "world" and when they arrived pulled a bait and switch.

dude, you should look up the conditions on slave ships.

it was horrific.

captured and inprisoned in africa and chained together.

then sold to a slave ship and

packed liked sardines in a tin and
made to live in their own piss and shit.

they didn't get a choice so no one had to convince them to come.
 
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djimb

Well-known member
Veteran
I think we can guess that cannabis wasn’t indigenous in many places but I would wager it’s been here on this planet way longer than man and may have been on many parts of Pangea when the continents split. At the very least Hawaii has some outstanding heirlooms that have been passed down through generations of growers. When did they arrive in Hawaii is anyone’s guess but kind bud has come from the islands for as long as I can remember

As cool an idea as it might be that cannabis was on Pangaea, the fossil record doesn't support it.

Pangaea started breaking up 176 million years ago. The oldest fossils we've found of any flowering plants are 160 million years old.

The tectonic plates move between 1cm to 16cm per year, according to wikipedia. So by the time the plants that became the oldest flower fossils were growing, the various plates had moved anywhere from 160km to 2,560km.

Furthermore, plants that could be classified as early members of the Cannabaceae family, to which Cannabis belongs, along with hops (Humulus), don't appear in the fossil record until somewhere between 82 and 66 million years ago, in Germany. Cannabaceae and Urticaceae, the nettle family, diverged about 34 million years ago, and Humulus species diverged from each other about 6 million years ago, so Cannabis as a genus is somewhere between 34 and 6 million years old. We've only been using it for fiber, food, and maybe to get high for the last 50,000 years or so.

Regarding Cannabis being brought to the Americas by pre-columbian sailors from Africa or Asia, I guess it's possible, but there's no way to verify it, and if it happened, Cannabis didn't become widespread in the Americas until it was brought by Europeans, Indians, and possibly western Africans. If it was here before Columbus, it would have had to be such a small population that it's genetic impact in the varieties that developed in the Caribbean or South/Central America would have been negligible.

(All figures gleaned from Wikipedia and this article: https://sensiseeds.com/en/blog/cannabis-archaeology-palaeobotany/ dubious as it's source may be, it seems legit.)
 

djimb

Well-known member
Veteran
i thought jamaican weed was pretty average with the samples i had during my visit there,
that kinda weed u can smoke in a joint all day ...



im sure there are better samples , but doubting much selection or preservation is done ,
its about producing weed for money , not about preserving some landrace there ..

I'm curious when you visited and what your source was. I respect your opinion, but I also figure a tourist isn't going to have easy access to the personal gardens of Rastafari that use it as a sacrement.

That being said, it seems like most landrace/heirloom varieties have relatively low thc content (10-15%), so i could see it still being easy to smoke all day if you've got a high tolerance.
 

Roms

Well-known member
Veteran
If there was Cannabis in the Americas pre Columbus there where are the pollen, stem or seed remains? Everywhere Cannabis was traditionally in the old world you can find both pollen and seed remains, everywhere....
But none have been found in the Americas that is pre Columbus, not one.

Columbus start thing is just a mistake by our Christian Judeo paradigm, old civilisations like Armorica or Vikings know America and from a very long time! So they necessarily brought cannabis seeds with them because of its importance to them. And it's without considering the AmerIndian lond history in itself by the Bering Strait! Cannabis was in America before the year zero no doubt! You just have to find the evidence that certainly exists somewhere but I do not think that really interests the intelligence of current historians pro Cristian Judéo! It would upset the consciences too much aha!

For the Jamaican rasta ganja yes, Indian sadduh cultural origins, and logically via Ethiopia! Perso i felt this evidence by growing and smoking the Kerala genetics!
 

Elmer Bud

Genotype Sex Worker AKA strain whore
Veteran
G `day Roms

Dunno about Ethiopians in Jamaica ?
I know the Rastas want to go to Ethiopia . The "prophet "Marcus Garvey and Halle Selasie . blah , blah , blah ...
Though I doubt their ancestors came from there .
The Atlantic slave trade moved people from West Africa to the Caribbean . Ethiopia is on the other side of the continent North East .

The dread locks may have come out of Africa . There was a militant tribe who wore dreads .
Sadhus in Jamaica ?? Coolies yes . Holy men I highly doubt .


Thanks for sharin

EB .
 

GoatCheese

Active member
Veteran
G `day Roms

Dunno about Ethiopians in Jamaica ?
I know the Rastas want to go to Ethiopia . The "prophet "Marcus Garvey and Halle Selasie . blah , blah , blah ...
Though I doubt their ancestors came from there .
The Atlantic slave trade moved people from West Africa to the Caribbean . Ethiopia is on the other side of the continent North East .

The dread locks may have come out of Africa . There was a militant tribe who wore dreads .
Sadhus in Jamaica ?? Coolies yes . Holy men I highly doubt .


Thanks for sharin

EB .
Ethiopian connection to Rastas come from the fact that Haile Selassie fought against the Italian colonialists, so Rastas saw him as "God/Jesus/what ever" for that reason.

i thought jamaican weed was pretty average with the samples i had during my visit there,
that kinda weed u can smoke in a joint all day ...

im sure there are better samples , but doubting much selection or preservation is done ,
its about producing weed for money , not about preserving some landrace there ..
It was mentioned in a book about Bob Marley that sometimes he received strong weed from the mountains, implying the more common stuff wasn't as potent. In the book it was mentioned also that Marley smoked a round a pound a week! .. but probably the milder stuff i assume.
 

Elmer Bud

Genotype Sex Worker AKA strain whore
Veteran
G `day GC

The prophecy of Marcus Garvey was before WW2 ...

Many people believe that what Marcus Garvey said in 1920, ("Look to Africa, when a black king shall be crowned, for the day of deliverance is at hand"), came true in 1930, when Ras Tafari Makonnen was crowned the new Emperor of Ethiopia, and became known as Emperor Haile Selassie.

He had a scar on the palm of one hand . When he came to Jamaica he waved to the crowds . Some folks saw the scar and thought he was Jesus reincarnate ! lol .

I`m a baptised Catholic . Religions suck . All of them .

Thanks for sharin

EB .
 

ctg

Well-known member
Veteran
I read somewhere that coca leaves were found in vessels in the tombs of the pharaohs. Coca is from South America so maybe trade was taking place way before Columbus came to America
 

CaptainDankness

Well-known member
i thought jamaican weed was pretty average with the samples i had during my visit there,
that kinda weed u can smoke in a joint all day ...



im sure there are better samples , but doubting much selection or preservation is done ,
its about producing weed for money , not about preserving some landrace there ..

Yeah for the most part it seems to be like Mexican brick, really I'm sure most Americans on the east coast anyways have smoked plenty of Jamaican brick just looked like the same old trash. Of course like Mexico they had to have a few decent strains though now most everything is watered down (or up:biggrin:) with Skunk and other Western hybrids.

They may have some legit Lambsbread in a very remote area, though I kind of doubt it since it seems Jamaicans love Western genetics. Pretty much like Mexico you never hear about their old school strains, I've also grown a few Mexican brick weed seeds and I've certainly never gotten ahold of a pure sativa.

I'm sure they do have great bud in Jamaica, just not commercially grown in fields.
 
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