The controversial ‘lost child’ of the cannabis family

You have heard about Cannabis Indica. Sativa you probably love. So, what about Cannabis ruderalis?
This is apparently a lesser known species of the cannabis family (ruderaliscomes from ruderal which means root), though there are a few debates that it’s only a descendant of Indica.

Ruderalis is a tough plant as its survival involved coping with harsh conditions, of both weather and human habitation. Found in Asia, Russia and Central/ Eastern Europe, the Ruderalis has a short flowering cycle of 21 to 30 days. The flowering does not depend on the light cycle, unlike Sativa and Indica. And this is the reason many growers love it: its ability to ‘autoflower’.

Once thought to be a wild cousin, in recent times there have been some growers who have used it to create new hybrids.

This autoflowering strain is short – just 1 to 2.5 feet at harvest time. It is a very robust plant with a more improvisational growth pattern with wide leaves that are light green in colour.

While the buds are smaller than usual, they have body and are held on by sturdy stems.

Ruderalis genes offer the ability for breeders to create an autoflowering hybrid with the advanced potency and flavour profile from its genetic partner.

While the general view is that Ruderalis has low THC content, there are people who think otherwise.

Jordan Stojanov had this to say about Ruderalis, replying to a report on Leafly that spoke about the low THC content: “We have Ruderalis here in Macedonia that are very potent: 23% THC content. They are old, from the Turkish occupation time when they used the land to grow opium and cannabis for 500 years.”

There are others who believe that Ruderalis is nothing more than the usual hemp.

While we are still to sample cannabis ruderalis, we are happy to see that the cannabis family has one more member, albeit bit contentious one.