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Title: Marijuana Botany by Robert Connell Clarke, Cherlyn Lee, Pam Elias ISBN: 0-914171-78-X Publisher: Ronin Publishing Pub. Date: April, 1992 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.83 (12 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Clarke¿s Marijuana Botany Review + What You Really Want!
Comment: The best place to start with this review is to tell you that you do not want this book if you are new to growing. This is not where you want to be going. Getting this book is a mistake which many new growers have made. So you have been warned!! There are other books that cover cannabis cultivation much more accurately like "The Cannabis Grow Bible" by Greg Green which I very highly recommend or "Indoor Marijuana Horticulture" by Jorge Cervantes a reasonably good grow guide. I find Ed Rosenthal's books a little wrong at times and Mel Franks work is far too old to be practical these days. So if you are looking for cultivation information go in that direction first but if you want some cannabis botany science and breeding information then carry on with this review.
The book is divided into four sections. The Sinsemilla Life Cycle of Cannabis, the Propagation of Cannabis, Genetics and Breeding of Cannabis, and finally Maturation and Harvesting of Cannabis.
The first section is very short and deals with the basic cycle of the cannabis plant from seed to the end of its life to the give the reader the basics of how the plant grows - however the botanical features of all the different strains in existence do vary from Clarke's basic descriptions, but at least his references are explained in extreme detail along with plant morphology. It is an important introduction chapter for what the rest of the book has to offer.
The second section is about the different ways that cannabis can be continued either by seeds or cloning and so this chapters covers both cloning and pollination but it is mostly concerned with pollen and manual pollination techniques. The seed selection part of this chapter is redundant and not really advised as a selection criteria for selecting seeds. There is only one way to know what a new hybrid seed can produce and that is to grow it out. The cloning section covers rooting and hormones, both important parts of the cloning technique for those who want to replicate their mother plant over and over again. The final part of this chapter deals with grafting, which is more of an experiment you can do but it is not used by cannabis cultivators. The chapter finishes with pruning, to help improve your yields.
The third section is really what this book is all about - the genetics of cannabis, and it can be confusing at the best of times because it dives right into it without much of a helper at the start, so be warned you will need something else to help you make head or tale of this section but I will come to that in a moment. After introducing us to the world of filial generations (F1, F2 ...) , heterozygous and homozygous, Clarke quickly turns to Polyploidy. Now this is a manmade condition which is inflicted on the cannabis plant to alter its chromosome number. The author believes this may increase potency but recent evaluation of Polyploidy cannabis and genetics have proven otherwise, but you will find this interesting all the same. The author then comes to meat of the book - breeding. Now this is 50/50 presentation. There is a whack load of breeding information that is extremely helpful and a ton of stuff that is very specialized towards strains that most of us will never see or work with because no one sells them anymore. You will also find references to the botanical aspects of the plant and how these traits can be mixed and fixed by breeding. Interesting and useful and this is probably the most important part of the book and the most often referred to by breeders.
The forth part of the book is about harvest times and how to judge them. The author also covers Cannabinoid Biosynthesis, but a lot of this has since changed since he wrote about it. Useful though, and you will reference it if you are interested in cannabinoids - but there are better books on cannabinoids out there. The book finishes by covering curing techniques and storage.
Now listen closely because this is exactly what I recommend you to do if you are interested in breeding cannabis. Do not get this book first. First of all you should take a look at "The Cannabible" by Jason King. It also contains an introduction by Clarke and will give you a look at the different cannabis strain, but forget the breeding section in that book because it has inaccuracies and is not the best. Your next move is a good grow book. Now you would do well to buy several but if you can only afford one get "The Cannabis Grow Bible" by Greg Green. Forget the garbage PDF that you might find on the internet of that book. It is old (2001) and is missing a lot. Get the 2003 paperback edition which is vastly superior and very different. "The Cannabis Grow Bible" has an excellent Chapter on Breeding and is an absolute 'must have' for anybody interested in breeding. That chapter alone is sometimes more useful than this whole book from Clarke. Once you have that book and chapter you will be in a much better position to use this book from Clarke. I can guarantee you that now. Forget about the breeding chapter in "Marijuana Indoor Horticulture" by Jorge Cervantes. Its bunk. The author of that book claims that clones loose their genetic integrity with every generation. That is nonsense and voids that whole chapter of his book. If you are looking for a good book on cannabinoids then get "Marijuana Chemistry: Genetics, Processing & Potency" by Michael Starks. Okay this is the best I can do for you. Do get this book though. Just follow the path above and you will achieve your breeding goals. Good Luck.
Rating: 5
Summary: A Masters Thesis, Not a "How To Grow Really Strong Pot" book
Comment: First of all, if we stick to the facts, Robert Clarke wrote this text as his master's thesis to earn his graduate degree in botany from UC Berkeley, not so that a bunch of dopers could grow stronger weed. With that in mind, think about the subject material; this book was written for scientists and botanists with MSc and PhD level accreditations in botany, not Phineas, Freewheeling Franklin, or Fat Freddie and his cat...
I think that most reviews of this book are negative because they do not understand the nature of this work. In all actuality, it is a very important piece of work that quite thoroughly details genetic breeding of a particular species of plant, and that just so happens to be marijuana...
If you want a very good "how to grow kick-butt weed" book, pick up a copy of, "Indoor Marijuana Horticulture" by Jorge Cervantes; its better suited to the layperson who wants to try growing at home. Another book I found helpful for consulting was "Marijuana Grower's Insiders Guide" by Mel Frank...
Rating: 4
Summary: Old but still good
Comment: This is a good book about the marijuana plant itself but is a bit dated. Still if you want to learn more about breeding and plant physiognomy then this is a good choice.
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Title: Indoor Marijuana Horticulture - The Indoor Bible by Jorge Cervantes ISBN: 1878823299 Publisher: Van Patten Pub Pub. Date: September, 2001 List Price(USD): $21.95 |
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Title: The Big Book of Buds: Marijuana Varieties from the World's Great Seed Breeders by Ed Rosenthal ISBN: 0932551394 Publisher: Quick American Archives Pub. Date: 10 December, 2001 List Price(USD): $18.95 |
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Title: The Cannabis Grow Bible: The Definitive Guide to Growing Marijuana for Recreational and Medical Use by Greg Green ISBN: 1931160171 Publisher: Green Candy Press Pub. Date: 27 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $21.95 |
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Title: The Cannabible by Jason King ISBN: 1580083617 Publisher: Ten Speed Press Pub. Date: December, 2001 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
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Title: Cannabis Cultivation: A Complete Growers Guide by Mel Thomas ISBN: 1931160090 Publisher: Green Candy Press Pub. Date: December, 2002 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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