A comparative evaluation of biomass and resin by-products attributes of six hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) cultivars grown in Rif Mountains (northern Morocco)
Abstract
The present work aims to investigate biomass, production parameters, resin-derived products, and ratios in the six cultivars widely cultivated in the study area during three consecutive crop seasons (2014–2016).
Our results showed wide variations among cultivars and crop seasons. Both crop season and cultivar and their interaction impacted significantly the main studied parameters.
However, the cultivar was the main variability source (81% of the total variance) except for inflorescence dry weight (IDW), which was mainly determined by crop season effects (66% of the total variance).
Concerning cultivars, ‘Critical Plus’ showed the greatest record of biomass and resin production (‘Ghli’ and ‘Tampou’). While ‘Afya’ and % males had the highest values in ‘Mexicana’ and ‘Khardala’, respectively.
In contrast, the smallest values of sex ratio, plant height, stem diameter, and % females were recorded in ‘Mexicana’ and ‘Khardala’, respectively.
The lowest values of all investigated parameters were gathered by the ‘Industriel’ cultivar. Moreover, ‘Avocat’ had the lowest record of inflorescence dry weight/total dry weight, while ‘Beldiya’ had the highest value of sex ratio and the lowest value of ‘Afya’.
The resin quantity in the six cultivars clearly shows that ‘Critical Plus’ produces resin yield six times more than the local cultivar ‘Beldiya’. The highest quality of resin was found in the ‘Mexicana’ followed by ‘Avocat’ cultivars, while the cultivar ‘Beldiya’ produces a lower resin quality.
In conclusion, ‘Beldiya’ produced less resin but was adapted to the Rif’s dryness and could escape severe water stress; contrariwise, the new hybrid varieties require a lot of water.”
Read the study at: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42535-024-01077-x