Had he known of this age-old custom, Freud might have written an insightful treatise on the symbolism of this bit of agricultural castration. The intoxicating resin is secreted by glandular hairs located around the flowers and to a certain extent in the lower portions of the plant. In very hot climates, as in India and North Africa, so much resin is produced that the plant appears to be covered with a sticky dew even as it bakes under the parching rays of the hot sun. This resin serves as a protective shield preventing loss of water from the plant to the dry air. And of course, the more resin, the more THC likely to be present.
Cannabis seeds are brownish and rather hard.
When pressed, they yield a yellowish-green oil once used to make soap, lamp oil, paint and varnish. Bird fanciers claim that hemp seed stimulates birds to develop superior plumage. While the seeds contain far less THC than the leaves or flowers, the chemical is still present. Although there are no reports of any birds flying into trees or houses after feasting on a meal of cannabis seeds, it was by burning these seeds and inhaling the fumes given off that some ancient societies first experienced cannabis's intoxicating powers. The stem of the plant is square and hollow and covered with strong fibers.