Are hemp and marijuana the same thing?

The answer is both yes and no, so here is the abridged version: “marijuanna” will probably get you high, and “hemp” will probably not.  

If you want the detailed answer, keep reading…

Let’s get technical... “Hemp” and “Marijuanna” are both common names for the same plant species, Cannabis sativa L.

Typically, “marijuanna” refers to a cannabis plant that is naturally higher in THC–the cannabinoid molecule that makes you feel high. 

“Hemp” typically refers to a cannabis plant grown for fiber and food production. Often hemp varieties produce less than 0.3% THC (a variable that was decided on in 1976 but that is a story for another time).

Most cannabis on the market today, regardless of THC content, is a hybridization– or cross-breeding– of many different genetics to achieve the outcome a farmer is looking for. 

Seems kind of confusing, but think of it like tomatoes: there are little tomatoes and big ones, red and orange and yellow. All tomatoes are the same plant species, Solanum lycopersicum, but they have been cultivated for hundreds of years yielding all of the different varieties we know today. This is why there is so much variety with tomatoes, and also with cannabis.

We grow cannabis that is meant to have low THC but still high flower production and dominant in other cannabinoids like CBD. So our plants aren’t really “hemp” or “marijuana,” but a type of cannabis.