Nederwiet is marijuana that is grown in the Netherlands for recreational use. It can be grown both indoors and outdoors. You may have a maximum of five plants in your home or garden. These should not be grown under grow lights, or otherwise give the impression of being professionally grown. The first real Dutch weed emerged in the 1970s. Since October 2011, heavier marijuana (which includes many Dutch weed) has been on the hard drugs list.
American weed is the cradle of Dutch weed
The first mention of cannabis grown in the Netherlands is from around 1955, where Indian hemp (Cannabis sativa) was grown for recreational use in a garden near Utrecht . This was a distant predecessor of the Dutch weed that became known from the 1970s, and the only similarity is that it was grown in the Netherlands. It is assumed that the later Nederwiet is a derivative of Californian Northern Lights, one of the stronger types of cannabis. This American weed was introduced in the Netherlands during the 1960s. Northern Lights is a cross between the Cannabis sativa and Cannabis indica strains. The Cannabis sativa plants are larger than the indica plants and have thinner leaves.
Marijuana Cultivation Handbook
A few years after the introduction of Northern Lights weed, the Dutch translation of Bill Drake’s book The Cultivar’s Handbook Of Marijuana was published in 1972. The title of the translation is: The Cannabis Book, Handbook for Marijuana Cultivation. This is the first time that ‘weed’ is mentioned, based on the English ‘weed’. The cultivation method of cannabis plants was also explained. This book turned out to be important for growing marijuana yourself. Since then, the cultivation of Dutch weed has boomed.
Several types of Dutch weed
From the 1980s onwards, various types of Dutch weed were developed through crossbreeding. These each got their own name. The best known of these are White Widow, Orange Bud and Northern Light, named after the original American cannabis that is said to have formed the basis of Dutch cannabis. The various variants differ from each other in terms of yield per plant, taste and THC content. THC means tetrahydrocannabinol , and is the intoxication substance contained in the plant. The effect on the user will therefore be greater with a higher THC content. Although Nederwiet is among the strongest weed, not every variant necessarily has an exceptionally high THC content. Orange Bud is one of the lighter varieties with approximately 11% THC.
Dutch weed is hard drugs
Initially, Dutch weed was a cheap method to grow cannabis plants at home, especially for personal use. In the 1970s and 1980s, the THC content was lower than or equal to that of the foreign varieties and amounted to 4 to 10%. In recent decades, this has increased to values that exceed those of other species due to breeding and improved breeding options. Nowadays this is between 13 and 22% for Dutch weed. In October 2011, the government determined that cannabis with a THC content of more than 15% will now be equated with heroin and cocaine and will be regarded as hard drugs.