The Lucrative Business of Manufacturing Hemp Products in America

Cannabisis the scientific name for the plant known in common English as hemp. The Cannabis plant reproduces sexually, meaning both male and female characteristics of the plant are necessary for the process. While a single male or female plant cannot reproduce itself, there are plants with both characteristics (hermaphrodites) that can be fertile or sterile.

The word "hemp" applies not only to Cannabis, but also to other durable multi-purpose plants that have been used throughout history. The most well-known product to come from hemp is fiber, and the word can be used in reference to the twine/rope that is made from it, as well as the stalk of the plant itself.

The word "marijuana" comes from Mexican slang and refers specifically to the bud (flower) part of the female plant. The bud contains psychoactive and physiologically active chemical compounds known as cannabinoids. These compounds are consumed in various forms (often smoked) for recreational, medical, and (in some cultures) spiritual purposes. The term "marijuana" became popular in the late 1930s during the Reefer Madness Movement, a name adopted from a ridiculous propaganda piece in which a man went crazy from using marijuana and killed his whole family with an axe.

In our modern lingo, the word "hemp" is usually used in reference to Cannabis that is cultivated for uses that are not drug-related and the words "cannabis" and "marijuana" are used in reference to the plants that are cultivated for their psychoactive qualities.

Scientific Classification
Scientific classification, also known as biological classification, is a system used by biologists to classify species of organisms according to shared physical characteristics. This classification belongs to the science of biological systematics or taxonomy. According to this system, Cannabis falls into the following categories:

Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliphpyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Rosales
Family: Cannabaceae
Genus: Cannabis
Species: sativa (or indica, or ruderalis)