What’s the Difference Between Cannabis & Hemp?
If you’ve been smoking cannabis for a while now, you’ve likely found yourself comparing hemp vs cannabis. You likely wonder whether these two plants are the same, or even alike in any way.
Don’t worry; we’ve got all the information you need. In this blog, we’ll tell you what the difference between hemp and cannabis is.
Many people use the terms hemp and cannabis interchangeably, believing them to mean the same thing. Well, they don’t.
While these plants are incredibly similar, they couldn’t be more different. We’ll tell you all about that in just a bit.
Before we get into hemp vs cannabis, though, we’ll first need to discuss each plant and its unique features.
What is Cannabis?
Cannabis is a psychoactive plant that grows all around the world. It is cultivated for its buds, which are dried, cured, and then smoked.
This herb has different names all around the world, including pot, ganja, and weed, among others. For a long time, cannabis has been a controlled substance in Canada and the United States, but things have changed.
Now, many enthusiasts are free to consume this plant for its psychoactive and therapeutic effects. Due to its organic nature, weed is a must-have for everyone who’s into plant medicine.
And the good news is: you can easily buy it from an online dispensary.
So, what’s the difference between hemp and cannabis? We’ll discuss the nuances of hemp vs cannabis in just a bit, but let’s first break down what hemp is.
What is Hemp?
Hemp is a cultivar of the cannabis plant that’s grown for industrial use. It has a wide range of applications and is one of the most useful plants on the planet.
Unlike weed, which is grown for its psychoactive flower, hemp is mainly grown as a food and fibre crop. Its stalk, seeds, and flower are all harvested and utilized.
Now that we know what these plants are, let’s get down to the discussion of hemp vs cannabis.
Pot Vs Hemp: Difference Between Hemp & Cannabis
The topic of pot vs hemp is a confusing one for many people, and we understand. These two plants look so similar that it’s easy to mistake them for each other.
However, they have many fundamental differences. Let’s discuss some of them:
– Hemp vs Cannabis: Genetic and Botanical Differences
While these two plants belong to the same species, they have differing genetic traits. Through selective breeding, we’ve created two plants with unique genetics and traits.
For instance, cannabis plants have a short, bushy form, with many branches to support more buds. Hemp, on the other hand, grows tall and slender, with slim leaves and thinner branches.
The genetic difference between hemp and cannabis plays a crucial role in how each of these plants is perceived. It’s also caused a difference in how they’ve been classified over the years.
– Hemp vs Cannabis: Chemical Content
Another crucial difference between hemp and cannabis is their chemical content.
Cannabis plants are bred to have an abundance of THC, the psychoactive chemical that gets us high when we smoke weed. They may also contain traces of CBD, CBG, CBN, and other cannabinoids.
Hemp, on the other hand, contains an abundance of CBD and only trace amounts of THC. This makes it non-psychoactive, meaning it won’t get you high.
If you’re looking for the psychotropic cannabis experience, you can buy weed flower at our online dispensary. But if you’d rather enjoy the therapeutic cannabis experience without getting high, you could opt for some CBD edibles.
The average cannabis strain contains anywhere from 5% to over 30% THC, but often lower than 2% CBD. Hemp, on the other hand, contains at least 10% CBD, with some varieties boasting more than 30%.
When it comes to THC, however, hemp plants contain less than 0.3% by dry weight
– Hemp vs Cannabis: Legal Classification in Canada
The legal fight against cannabis, which has spanned decades, has had grave repercussions on innocent people. It was only in 2018 that the Cannabis Act was enacted and signed into law, decriminalizing cannabis and regulating its sale.
For example, it can only be bought from a retail cannabis store or an online weed dispensary. This is done to ensure customers are protected from low-quality, haphazardly produced cannabis products.
The same isn’t true for hemp. By 1998, the federal government had already begun regulating the growth, processing, and trade of industrial hemp.
Since hemp is non-intoxicating, it has long been used to make skin lotions, hair creams, and other wellness products. These items can easily be found in convenience stores, beauty parlours, and other accessible locations.
– Hemp vs Cannabis: Differences In How We Use Them
We can’t discuss the difference between hemp and cannabis without discussing their different applications. Let’s start with hemp.
This magnificent plant has a wide variety of uses and can be utilized in a diverse range of industries. For example, it can be:
- Used in the textile industry to make fabrics, shoes, clothes, bags, carpets, rugs, upholstery, etc
- Used in the construction industry to make hempcrete, insulation panels, wall boards, ropes, and twines
- Used in the food and nutrition industry to make hemp seed oil, hemp milk, protein powders, snack bars, and hemp seed
- Used in the paper and pulp industry to make toilet paper, cardboard, and other paper products
- Used in packaging to make biodegradable packaging materials
- Used in farming as an animal feed for livestock, birds, and domestic pets
As innovation continues to take centre stage in the world of cannabis, we’ll soon have even more uses for industrial hemp.
Now, since we grow cannabis to consume its buds, it has much less industrial effects. That said, many enthusiasts love its psychoactive and therapeutic benefits.
Let’s break down some of them:
– Recreational uses:
The THC in cannabis causes an altered state of mind, euphoria, relaxation, and increased sociability. The recreational factor is, therefore, a huge reason why people buy weed online in Canada.
– Medicinal uses:
Before recreational cannabis became legal, many provinces in Canada had provisions for legal cannabis. Weed has various medical applications.
These include providing relief against physical pain, insomnia, muscle cramps, mood swings, and the symptoms of debilitating illnesses.
– Industrial uses:
Just like hemp, the stalks and leaves of the cannabis plant can be used in the textile, paper, animal feed, insulation, and building industries.
– Spiritual & cultural uses:
For centuries, different communities all around the world have used cannabis during their ritualistic ceremonies. These include Hindus, Buddhists, Rastafaris, and Sikhs.
To this day, cannabis remains an integral part of these cultures, and this likely isn’t changing anytime soon. This is a crucial difference between pot vs hemp.
Now that we know this difference between hemp and cannabis, let’s look at a couple more.
– Hemp vs Cannabis: How to Buy Them
As we’ve mentioned in passing, there’s only one way to buy weed: from a regulated platform. You could either shop from an online weed dispensary or choose to visit a retail cannabis store.
At Bud Express Dispensary, our legacy online dispensary in Canada, cannabis products are in abundance: edibles, pre-rolls, concentrates, strains, and vape carts, among others.
Hemp products, on the other hand, are available in general wellness websites and lifestyle stores. Look out for that tub of hair cream with a gorgeous Indian lady and CBD emblazoned on the branding.
– Hemp vs Cannabis: Farming Requirements
Another essential difference between hemp and cannabis is how they’re grown. Hemp is often cultivated in the great outdoors.
It grows like a weed— rapidly and in different climates— requiring little maintenance. Due to its industrial applications, large corporations typically cultivate hemp on vast acreage.
However, unlike with cannabis, where the emphasis is on the quality and potency of the flower, hemp growers target density.
Cannabis, by contrast, demands a lot more attention. Many farmers prefer to grow it indoors, where they can control humidity, temperature, lighting, and other essential factors.
The focus is on getting buds with various cannabinoids and terpenes, making them potent and aromatic. If you like such cannabis, you’ll have a great time shopping at our weed store online.
– Hemp vs Cannabis: Economic and Environmental Impact
Another big difference between hemp and cannabis is the impact they have on the environment.
Hemp has long been praised for its positive impact on the environment. Due to the large surface area of hemp plants, they absorb copious amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere.
They also require much less water than most cash crops, which makes sense considering it can even perform well in the desert. Hemp also helps in soil regeneration, making it the ideal plant for crop rotation.
Its biodegradability makes it even more impactful to the environment. As hemp packaging becomes more popular and accepted, we could more easily minimize plastic waste.
In contrast, cannabis has a much larger environmental footprint. When grown indoors, cannabis farming requires lots of electricity, which powers the lighting and ventilation necessary for optimum cannabis growth.
So, when talking about pot vs hemp, it’s important to mention the implications they each have on the environment.
Online Shopping For Weed
Now that we’ve covered the difference between hemp and cannabis, it’s time to discuss how to buy Canadian weed online. Isn’t that why you were curious to learn about hemp vs cannabis in the first place?
Many cannabis enthusiasts would rather shop from an online pot store than visit a retail cannabis store. Here are a few reasons why:
– Convenience
Nothing beats the convenience of shopping from an online dispensary in Canada. Why waste time driving to a retail weed store when you can easily buy online pot?
– Variety
When you buy weed online, you’ll be fascinated by how extensive the product menus are. An online pot shop worth its salt sells everything, from edibles to vape pens.
– Pricing
If you want to order weed online, Canada dispensaries ensure you don’t drain your wallet doing so. The typical online dispensary runs sales, promos, and deals, making it super cheap to buy weed online.
– Delivery
When you buy online pot Canada, you enjoy quick, reliable, and discreet delivery. Wherever you live, your order will be shipped straight to your door. If that’s not reason enough to order weed online, we don’t know what is.
Have you been wondering whether you should buy weed online Canada or visit a cannabis store? Most seasoned stoners exclusively go online shopping for weed.
So what are you waiting for? Buy weed online in Canada from Bud Express Now, our online pot shop!