Habitat and Geography
The geographical origin of Cannabis is rather difficult to explain because it has been used by people around the world for a long period of time. The use of Cannabis by humans has lead to the cultivation and hybridization of many different varieties of the plant. Therefore, it is difficult to trace the origin of Cannabis to one specific geographical location due to the various species, subspecies, and variations of the plant. The origin of Cannabis can be many different locations, depending upon where we would draw the line in the phylogenetic tree. For more information on the origin of Cannabis click on this link.... Phylogeny and Classification
Cannabis sativa is found practically everywhere around the world, excluding Antarctica. Cannabis sativa, the hemp plant is native to Central Asia north of the Himalayas (Brown, 1998). Cannabis was originally confined to this area, however it has become more widespread largely due to man. Now, Cannabis is found practically everywhere which brought about the term "weed." The term "weed" arose because to many people, Cannabis is simply a weed because it is so widespread. However, to many Cannabis is a very valuable and prized plant.