If you’re not into the history or politics of cannabis, odds are you’ve never heard of Lawrence Ringo. That’s a shame because Ringo is one of the most important figures in the modern history of medical cannabis. People who are currently familiar with medical cannabis probably learned about the topic back in 2013 when CNN doctor Sanjay Gupta changed his mind about “pot.” After his change of heart or mind, CNN aired a spot about kids with seizures getting relief from medical cannabis. Prior to his reversal Gupta had been a proponent of the drug war and wrote an opinion piece in 2009 called “Why I would Vote No on Pot.”
The segment that CNN aired (entitled “Weed”) about kids getting relief from painful seizures involved a strain of cannabis called “Charlotte’s Web,” named for one of the young patients who the medicine helped enormously. Many believe this was a kind of watershed moment that changed the dynamics of public health and the “drug war.” But where did Charlotte’s Web come from? Geographically speaking it comes from Northern California – specifically Humboldt County. But it really came about because of Lawrence Ringo. Here’s the thing about Ringo- he was born missing a disk between his third and fourth vertebrae. That means “bone on bone” pain that can sideline even the toughest of the tough. If you know anything about chronic back pain, especially the bone-on-bone variety, you can understand what kind of challenge even getting out of bed can be.
But Ringo’s one of those people that you can’t keep down for long. He’s too smart and industrious and he knew how to grow cannabis. He also knew that some types or strains seemed to provide the kind of pain relief he could not get from addictive pills. So he started taking notes, doing research and cross-breeding different strains to maximize pain relief. He spent years working this stuff out. Ringo’s goal was to figure out a way to breed cannabis that would provide the strongest pain relief as well as allow people to function at a high level without getting too stoned.
Ringo also invented “Concurring Light Deprivation” way back in 1980. The technique is now commonly used today and allows the cultivator to trick the plants into thinking it’s time to flower. This was a game-changer because growers could now call the shots on the timing of their harvests. (If you’re a cannabis person- you may remember or recognize the concept of “summer droughts,” prior to Ringo’s innovations.) Tragically, Ringo was not around long enough to see the impact of his knowledge and skills. He died from stage-4 lung cancer just two months after his diagnosis.
Thankfully, Ringo’s children have taken up their father’s mantle. Levi and his wife Danielle, now run the Southern Humboldt Seed Collective, and are the keepers of the strains. “The cooperative was formed to help support local farmers and [to] be able to provide enough CBD medicine to meet supply and demand,” Hart added. “We provide clones of our genetics, the farmers grow it, and the cooperative purchases it.”
Ringo’s Bio | sohum-seeds (kingofcbdgenetics.com)
The Ringo family are from cannabis culture and community people. Some people just aren’t in it for the fame and the glory – or the money and the power that comes with it. And it’s almost always these quiet, hard-working people that figure out something earth-changing and miraculous. For those with kids or relatives that suffer for violent seizures who can now better control them using medical cannabis, Ringo’s life and work is nothing short of a miracle. But even if you live in a state that allows access to medicinal cannabis, and your CDB oil is really doing the trick for your arthritis and anxiety, you should understand that the man who made all of that possible has a name. His name is Lawrence Ringo.
