Strain Library

Cambodia

Cambodian

Also called Cambodia, Cambodian Landrace, Cambodia Gold

Cannabis has long been a household plant in rural Cambodia, grown in small household plots. The best-documented growing province is Battambang in the north-west, with Pursat also named in news reports. American servicemen in Vietnam used “Cambodian Red” as a nickname for cannabis from there, and the phrase was in print by 1973. In 1999 police seized 11,400 kg of export-bound cannabis, according to a UNODC official quoted in 2008; by 2007 seizures had fallen to roughly 13 to 213 kg, and officials said large export crops had been eliminated while small traditional growing continued. How Cambodian seed reached Western breeders is poorly documented, and seed-bank lines called “Cambodian” carry unsourced origin stories.

Region
Western Cambodia (Battambang and Pursat provinces)
How sure we are
Mixed. Household cultivation and the 1990s-2000s export-scale crops are documented by UN and press sources; “Cambodian” seed lines have only unsourced seed-bank origins.
Keep in mind
Samples sold as “Cambodian” are generally modern seed-bank selections or crosses with unverified provenance, not a documented original Cambodian population.

Timeline

  1. Vietnam War era American servicemen nickname locally sourced cannabis by place, including “Cambodian Red”. Source
  2. 1973 “Cambodian red” is recorded in print as a name for cannabis from Cambodia. Source
  3. 1999 Police seize 11,400 kg of export-bound cannabis, according to a UNODC official quoted in 2008. Source
  4. 2007-2008 Seizures fall to about 13-213 kg; an official says large export crops are eliminated while small household growing continues. Source
  5. 2015 A senior anti-drug official says small growers following family tradition are exempt, while large plantings, such as one in Pursat, are raided. Source

Sources

  1. Cambodia Daily, “Traditional Users Hit by Cannabis Crop Cull” (2008)
  2. “The high life” (2015), reposted at ungassondrugs.org
  3. Green's Dictionary of Slang, “Cambodian” (Cambodian red)
  4. Kuzmarov, “Escaping the Horrors of War: Drugs and GI Resistance in Vietnam” (2008 conference talk)
  5. Wikipedia, Cannabis in Cambodia
  6. Leafly, “Cambodian” strain page (industry lore; gives no sourced history)
  7. Seedfinder, Pursat (seed-bank listing; industry lore)

All landrace strainsThe cannabis timeline

Written from the sources above. Informational only, not medical advice.