Cannabis plants have been spotted sprouting in public places up and down the UK, a country where the plant is categorized as a Class B drug and possession alone can lead to a five year prison sentence. The majestic herb can be found humbly sunning itself near some of the nation’s most iconic locations in central London, such as the BBC headquarters, Tower Bridge and The Shard.
Photo: Cannabis plants at BBC headquarders. Courtesy of Feed The Birds.
Although cannabis can flourish naturally in Britain’s wet, mild climate, as it has done in the past, these seeds were sown with intent. In perhaps one of the most profound acts of resistance in the UK’s legalization movement, the activist group “Feed The Birds” is distributing cannabis seeds across the country as part of a grassroots campaign to draw attention to the ridiculousness of prohibition.
Photo: Cannabis plants growing near London’s “Shard of Glass.” Courtesy of Feed The Birds.
Feed The Birds was founded in early 2014 by a person using the online alias Finn Hemingway. Since the movement germinated, they have accumulated over 23,000 Facebook followers; among these numbers are an estimated 2000 “birders” who contribute to the cause with acts of clandestine, yet highly effective, resistance. Planting, cultivating and harvesting cannabis plants in the UK is highly illegal and could lead to 14 years of imprisonment.
However, as displayed in the name, this movement has discovered and exploited a loophole in the legal system to render what they do perfectly legal. As it appears on the streets, all these activists are doing is throwing seeds around — quite literally feeding the birds. Although the plant itself is illegal to posses, cannabis seeds are not; it is legal to posses, sell and purchase them within the boarders of the UK. As long as they are not intentionally sown and germinated, it is legal to utilize them in a manner of different ways: to eat as food, to bait fish and to feed birds.
Photo: Cannabis plants near the Tower Bridge in London. Courtesy of Feed The Birds.
Scattering cannabis seeds in a public place with the intention of offering nutritionally dense, mineral and omega fatty acid rich seeds to our feathered friends is not a crime. If said seeds are not detected by hungry birds or banqueting squirrels, they will most likely begin to germinate and grow. Thus, cannabis plants as large and mature as those pictured can flourish in public places without a single person being prosecuted, punished or imprisoned.
“We believe that seeds left to grow highlight the ineffectiveness of prohibition, partly because cannabis grows naturally in the UK and has done for thousands of years, and partly because we feel visual protests are powerful and evocative,” Hemingway told Reset.
Each plant stands as a visual message regarding the skewed and failed drug policies that prohibit the herb.
Photo courtesy of Feed The Birds.
“Personally, I think cannabis is still illegal because British politicians do not want to be seen as having a ‘weak’ stance on drugs,” Hemingway said. “I would urge all politicians to use a scientific and an economic approach on drug law reform.”
Despite some fierce opposition to cannabis in the UK, many residents acknowledge the plant’s positives — medicinally and economically — and think penalties for its use, cultivation and possession are overly harsh. This becomes especially apparent in light of the U.S. states that have legalized adult use of the plant (there are four in total, plus Washington, D.C.). Since implementing legalization in 2013, Colorado has seen lowered domestic abuse and violent crime rates, and the state benefitted from a staggering $60 million in taxes and fees from cannabis sales in 2014. It has also become a mecca for families with epileptic children. They are migrating by the hundreds from all over the country to Colorado seeking a form of non-psychoactive, concentrated medical marijuana which has shown unprecedented success in mitigating seizures.
Cannabis clubs have sprung up in many towns and cities all over the UK in an attempt to organize collectives — consisting of bankers and barristers to farmers and teachers — to plan peaceful demonstrations, social media campaigns and “bird feeding” events.
When asked how cannabis clubs in the UK can be useful, Hemingway said they are an “important way of showing the authorities and the general population how cannabis clubs reduce harm and increase cannabis user safety.”
Feed The Birds is also spreading awareness about the highly sustainable industrial uses of hemp as well as the medicinal benefits of the plant. Modern science is revealing cannabis is a highly effective treatment for countless different ailments, ranging from cancer to chronic pain.
As well as cannabis seeds, Feed the Birds has given London — and England as a whole — a makeover in the form of message-laden stickers declaring the plants medicinal uses. The stickers are popping up in some eye catching places — like the police vehicle pictured below.
Photo courtesy of Feed The Birds.
Hemingway said the organization plans to distribute “millions upon millions” of seeds throughout the UK in the coming months — just in time for the upcoming general election. As a suitably modified version of an age old saying goes… “resistance is fertile.”
Photo courtesy of Feed The Birds.
It is time!
Legal drugs in an Ecological Society:
The ethical leaps forward society has historically made have been based upon extending our compassion.
http://www.ecohustler.co.uk/2014/06/11/is-decriminalising-drugs-a-step-towards-an-ecological-society/
And because of competition on the paper market back in 1920s some nitwitted GOPlins came up with the ridiculous propaganda that marijuana causes white girls to have sex with black men. And it got worse from there.
As a white dude – I find that it causes me to have sex with black girls. Oh no wait, I don’t do drugs, I just fancy black chicks. Dam it, I thought for a moment there I could help them with their propaganda campaign. Because I really enjoy being the governments bitch slave!
FOR FREEDOM!!!!!!
They do. And i have to say thank you .
It was also because alcohol prohibition flopped and they needed something to “war” on!
It’s true. Every time I get high, I have uncontrollable urges to have sex with black women.
As a chronic pain sufferer I use cannabis regularly – it has far less risk than prescribed pain killers, a pain specialist even recommended it, however, I saw a different specialist and told him I was getting good relief from cannabis and he started shouting at me and banging his fist on the desk “it’s illegal, it’s damaging your brain, it’s addictive”. Hypocrite then tried to prescribe another opiate – which makes me seriously ill!
I do not agree with the new genetically altered cannibis strains, they are too strong and cause psychological issues. They should legalise the traditional strains only…
well I would certainly use cannabis versus opiate pain killer But frankly, I’d rather not be taking a mind-altering substance every single of day of my life (i.e.. getting high), be it pot, alcohol, pain killers, what have you… Its just not a great recipe for a healthy connected life.
That being said, everyone should have the right to chose that for themselves.
Try waking up EVERY SINGLE DAY with extreme pain, that is the recipe for not having a healthy connected life. Before my spinal injuries I had a life, career, social scene. At least with cannabis I can move a little, smile and sometimes even laugh. I do not sit around smoking and feeling sorry for myself. I do Pilates, force myself to walk daily. It is criminal that people do not have LEGAL access to a wonderful, natural, safe substance that helps with so many ailments just because of out dated social stigma.
No arguments here man. That was exactly my point. In cases of intense chronic pain, where the alternative is a) intense pain or b) a highly addictive opiate, c) marijuana is a great alternative. No judgements here. All the power to you. And yes, it is ludicrous that it is not legal.
Uh… “genetically altered”? You mean bred, like all plants breed and no,, the new breeds don’t do that, you just put less of it in your mixture or you get a bit spun out :p The “not your dad’s weed” line is a very old propaganda tool various governments liked to employ, including Britain and America. I don’t blame you for wanting to be safe, it’s a pretty natural impulse, but the worst thing you can really get with the modern stuff is you don’t like the flavour or you smoke way too much and feel a bit feint. The ironic thing being that it’s actually quite effective at helping those with mental illness while increasing certain symptoms. More voices in their heads but less depression for schizophrenic people, for instance. Apologies for the massive amount of text, I see a lot of people saying this and I wanted to actually say something for once.
It depends what you’re looking for. For medical purposes you aren’t necessarily looking to get high, especially if one of your existing symptoms is that you’re a bit wobbly! If you can’t cope with the level of THC then a smaller dose reduces the available CBD and therefore the ‘worst thing’ might be that it really doesn’t do the job.
Yeah, I believe sativa oils are recommend for medical purposes and thc is generally the weakest in medical concentrations.
Utter Bollocks! It is the high THC strains, balanced with respectable levels of CBD’s and CBG’s that are eradicating various cancers and brain illnesses! You are spouting the propagandist’s point of view. Any of the opiates prescribed for pain will certainly get you just as blasted as cannabis medications but with many more dangerous side effects than you would experience with cannabis ingestion. Cannabis side effects include an increased appetite, drowsiness, mental fog and/or paranoia, (at the highest doses) and heightened creative thinking. Morphine kills you after addicting you. Your decision…
Couldn’t disagree more. Skunk is selectively bread to be high in thc content, which can cause paranoia in some smokers, and has less of the other chemicals which can counteract paranoia. So no mater how little you smoke you’re not really getting the chemical balance nature intended
Having tried it, it really isn’t that bad. Now, you’re allowed not to like skunk, nothing wrong with that. But strains are strains, they don’t magically turn into deadly nightshade from an increase in THC. Each strain has unique properties and I think people forget all of the variation you can get from breeding. You can get strains that enlighten you, inspire you, energize you and even make you not hungry. On the flip side, you can be rendered a hungry person with a 5 second attention span, lazy and mad munchies. And that’s to say nothing of medical strains, high in chemicals noted for painkilling and similar physical effects.
thats totally absurd! when you you look at hash from marrocco which was smoked during the 70s, you will realize it was also potent as weed today. Another point is, that there are much more strains on the market with lower thc- levels,that the people buy.
And at least – you dont use the same amount of skunk for a joint as from another strain – for example: you wouldnt drink whiskey in the same proportions as light beer!!….
Thats why a lot of strains today are still around as the top shelf even tho they might be from the 70tys , lets be honest cannabis is thousands of years old, and the only really nice strains are the pure “landracers” that are around,..And paranoia depends on the person location and type of weed.. There are 85 different cannabinoids ,ones with higher cbd should produce a more mellowing effect , maybe look for a indica as they generally produce more cbd , sativas are nice for a head high tho..
Cannabis is not just thousands, but millions of years old, much older than humans.
I used to drink tequila in proportions to what light beer was. But thats me and I could drink 80z in a night. Im a newf, we can drink anyone under the table, on top of the table, riding the table down the stairs, in a river on a table, you get my drift. Now where’s my papers? Meanwhile I had a reset two years ago, smoking weed for 29 years and two years ago my body decided to reset my tolerance back to 29 years ago.. I get fucking baked from a 0.2 pinner now.
Exactly! Some people don’t have the capacity of intelligence to even say something on this subject they are irrelevant.
I thought everybody knew that alcohol is by far the most common intoxicant that triggers underlying psychological conditions.
Is that right? Seems like you know everything. Like when it’s appropriate to to make racial slurs to me and tie your facebook profile to them. Hhhmm. What would someone do with this information?
Usually show it to their boss and have them fired but then you gotta think about the repercussions as to if the have kids and would you really want them to suffer a life of poverty even though they didnt do the transgression.
My Advice, ignore it. Hate begets hate begets hate, it never solves anything nor makes you feel good inside.
Don’t worry. He’s in his 60’s and has no family anymore. He actually has no real job either. Just a failed musician with a failed family. I will feel very good inside as I expose him, and I do.
How about you pretend you are me, make a comment on a story, and get called the N-word and then the dipshit sayes he’s going to get me a bannana. You have no idea. Don’t defend him. Or maybe, I should look at you through the same lens. Racist sympathizer.
Nonsense… Skunk #1 from 1981 has a THC content of about 11%… Half as much as modern strains with no skunk in them. Skunk isn’t even really available anymore cos its piss weak. The whole skunjk causes blah blah because its super strong arguments are just govt propaganda that people buy into stupidly. Skunmk number one is really only of interest to strain and growing connoisseurs, ur average smoker who just wants to get high wouldn’t even know what it is or appreciate the rarity.
Which skunk? There are currently 4 main skunk strains, each from the 80’s. And then some superhero decided to create Northern Lights late 80’s and Ive had a mad love affair with it since. NorthernLights #5 as an F1 did to cannabis what diesel power did to the locomotive.
Oh sweetie, the buses don’t go where you live! Let me dumb this down for you……Strains that are created from “breeding up” are usually done so to take advantage of a certain gene responsible for the trait or set of traits, be it taste, height, cbd and thc content, mould resistance (for example the same goes for dogs, cats). When you “breed up” from plant you create an F1 hybrid which possess the characteristics of the dominant gene, at this stage only the first generation of seeds would create the plant desired with any subsequent generations reverting back to its original genetics. To lock in the set of genetic codes you require you have to cross multiple times which is what nature does herself nicely to ensure survival of the fitest. Trouble with these “bred up” strains is that levels of cbd and thc can be damagingly toxic (any substance that creates a high is doing so by intoxication), on the principle of homeopathic medicine a little poison can be beneficial but at some point most plants beneficial substances become toxic to something. It’s not propaganda, people are genuinely freaking out on these strains and if only it was just as easy saying ease of it a bit. I could go into diagrams of plant RNA, DNA, genetic markers etc but I can’t be bothered, you’re a rude twat and when I’m not studying for my PHD I like putting idiots in their place. LATERS!!
Right, I think it’s important for all people to take into consideration that certain effects, like paranoia, are in fact correlational i.e. there is a relationship between use of strong cannabis and paranoia, not a cause and effect. Certain extraneous variables haven’t been taken into account. e.g. Does cannabis simply amplify the already existing paranoia associated with doing something illegal? Homeopathic medicine has been consistently shown to be nothing more than arbitrary placebo effect (I know this from reading studies and my own experiences with it). In my own experience with cannabis, the higher the THC content, the more stoned I get. My experience of other people is similar and their experiences the same. High doses of THC shouldn’t cause ‘freaking out’ or anything of the sort unless you’re in a position of which you are likely to freak out, ergo: in a park crawling with police, taking a lot of it on your first time and being put into an MRI machine (critique of the validity of the channel 4 documentary with John Snow), simply having an already existing psychotic disorder, etc. Essentially, it’s down to circumstance, not necessarily chemistry (although obviously that does play a role). I just think there needs to be more holistic discussion and study into this, from a non-partisan, scientific and entirely nonpolitically provoked organisation.
Thank you, I love being talked down to when I am not even being rude, I just disagreed with one point of yours. Okay, good luck with your PhD. I’m training to be a clinical psychologist, but how is either point relevant? I am fully aware of how F1 hybrids work and I believe most of what you said is simply repeating what I already said. Except for the part where you claim THC can be damagingly toxic, when the recorded LD50 would require you to smoke “1500 joints in one minute” and then you use homeopathy as an example. Oh. Homeopathy is a new age scam disproved by science and thc is not a poison, our brains have receptors specifically for its absorption. Too much can be bad for you of course, but I doubt even the most demented gene splicer could make a strain strong enough that one blunt could literally turn you into vegetable food. Now why am I saying all this? Is it to make you look stupid, to make me look smart? Neither. I disagreed with a point, sorry it really bothered you that much but hey. I have tested weed a lot and a high thc strain called White Russian was one of the most therapeutic experiences of my life and a low thc strain called Cats Piss made me violently ill. I think weed is very complex as an issue, but if we can’t even have a basic discussion about a point without resorting to personal attacks, showing off and using disproved systems such as homeopathy as examples… weed will never be taken seriously. I have nothing against you and your response has confused me, but I don’t have the best luck interacting with people so I’m not that surprised. Just well, don’t take things so personally, it doesn’t help your own stress levels. Personal experience here. Peace.
I thought we are all on here for the same Cause, “The cause” you all dont act like loving friendly pot smokers. wtf happened t you all? I bow my head and a tear runs down my cheek for the generations of today are lost on compassion.
I honestly didn’t perceive myself as being aggressive at any point, sorry if you see it that way.
Mandy talking bullshit haha saying you have to lock in genetics and shit hahaha.. wtf mate.. once you interchange genetics in something once ,,that dna dont just disapear after a few generations bahahah… and homeopathy interestingly enuff bro i have read that the electromagnetic feilds of the substance will stay, so even tho the soloution is gettin weaker on the scale the electromagnetic feild multiplies then building the structure in the water memory?.. kinda like you can record a song, and make a million copys of it, i dunno sounds strange you would have to look it up , i dont even kno what its called.. but look up water memory thats interesting enuff
Perfect example of why too much weed smoking is bad for you right here ^^
pretty sure some strains are getting genetically modified in israel , they would try do it to fuck the dna so it wouldnt be as medical.
Really? Well pardon my saying, I don’t want lab tampered grade. F1’s? Awesome. Frankenstein? Nah, I’m good. Ha, ha. Thanks for the information.
Genetic engineering leaves offspring sterile after a few generations my brother haha.. Thats why they want it in so bad , gm farmers have to constantly bye the seeds of monsato its a vicous cycle.. back to bud ,increasing uvb light can increase thc a fair bit in a recent study.
“genetically altered”? – Aah shit, have Monsanto got in on the gig already? Oh well, back to the safer alternative of prescribed drugs and tap water for me then.
I said genetically altered not engineered, big difference. Genetic engineering uses a manual method to introduce foreign DNA. If you breed up you are altering the original genetic code……ah blow this I get bored talking to stupid people.
If you change something DNA (Engineer by means of introducing foreign DNA, if you must) then you have ALTERED the DNA. You’re just trying to gain the higher intellectual ground (maybe because you’re condescending prick?), splitting hairs because you’re butt-hurt. Tbh, I don’t give a fuck about people like you that have to call someone stupid, just for trying to make light of a subject. Instead of assuming everyone who replies to you is inferior, maybe just accept that not everyone is a wikipedia monkey like yourself. Better still, just stop talking down at everyone like a condescending asshole. I don’t have time for stupid ignorant condescending people like you. There we’re even!
Thank heavens here in South Africa we still get the REAL STUFF….. Go DURBAN POISON & MALAWI GOLD….. He He He!!
Mixed with Heroin. Way to go!
As an user of medicinal cannabis you would especially benefit from the modified strains. There are many of them, and there are infinite combinations possible — not all of them are THC-strong.
There are no genetically altered strains of cannabis its governbent propaganda at its finest. Cannabis has been selectively bred for decades for potency so the cbd content has gone down to zero. This is the case with 99% of cannabis strains available an has been this way. For at least 20 years so its nothing new. Only very recently has a specific breeder started breeding cbd back in for medicinal purposes. There is no genitically altered super strength cannabis in existence. its jus normal cannabis thats like all other cannabis available. An then u have ur newer strains with high cbd that popsibly more closely represent the landrace cannabis/hashish that was around before the home grown scene kicked off.This whole geneticly altered crap came about from mis information an propaganda that was spread due to the decline in the soap bar hash market which isnt even real cannabis an has thc of 2% an people started using
real cannabis that is safer an less harmful but obviously stronger indoor grown cannabis sometimes reffered to as skunk.
I don’t know what the situation is in Britain but in certain western countries where they are technically illegal, opium poppies are grown by gardeners, presumably mainly by those who grow them for the plants’ beautiful flowers, not for their medicinal or psychoactive effects, & they are not molested or prosecuted by police, except in rare cases I’ve read about where people grew whole farm fields full, or had thousands of plants growing next to their homes.
and now, thanks to Lillians Law 90% of drivers can’t drive!
A Brownspliff is POTting soil rolled up in a brown paper towel or wrapping paper or envelope with a cannabis seed or two inside, which can be planted invisibly under a neglected hedgerow or bush where no one will notice the plant till it has grown up the following year and gone to seed and had hundreds of children! (All it takes is patience…)
Ride your bike at night with a rucksack loaded with Spliffs and a Dibble Stick (sharp-ended for making a hole in which the Brownspliff is placed upright) and plant one every two hundred yards or so apart all over town. The shade and protection of the bush overhead and the dribbledown of rainwater will serve to guarantee germination and good growth.
Yes, we like feeding the birds, and the camel too, but then that’s slightly different
well done ! Go on and overgrow the government – to end the fear about a harmless plant…
This is very funny and genius. What a creative way to “protest” against the absurdity of marihuana prohibition. Its a bit sad that still today, people who like marihuana are treated like criminals. Last night I was lucky enough to have a lady come to me and warn me about, not even police, but a group of the army coming to search all the people who were smoking in the park. I was able to scape and see how all the others got caught by them like they were criminals… All they were doing was smoking and relaxing in a park. Hopefully soon, this nonsense will come to an end.
Clever movement.
I live in the USA where Cannabis is a battle all over the country… what a great idea to just scatter seeds!
Back when I used to smoke it, I did a lot of that. If I cleaned my reefer and got some seeds, I’d pitch a few here and there.
I’m sure at least a few of the wild grows in places I’ve been are descended from my traveling days. It ay be just wishful thinking, but it’s a plesant thought.
Is the story of my “life” so unbelievable that people think I am not real ? You bet it is, it took a year testing to PROVE it to myself !
~ I will try to explain again. Atoms make up molecules. There is less than 80 known ATOMS in the universe. Heat makes atoms create molecules.
~ Here is a good example of how “controlled” we are. On 08-30-2008 I wrecked my motor bike by SEALY LAKE, it still is the worst bike wreck in MONTANA with no helmet to live through to date. It killed me 3 times in life flight & was in an 87 day coma waking with a registered 5.5 brain injury requiring life to be relearned. Since returning home ( with next to no memory) I had a friend ask me to get a medical card & try “cannabis. I was amazed because it got my thought process working again & my memories started returning. Since then I have been trying to tell the media but have been blocked by the “investers”.
So I meditated on how GOLD was formed, then have been in process of making some. I have turned yellow brass into 9k & red brass into 12k, bearing bronze into 17k. Working on pure now but still nobody believes even when it gets tested at the GOLD shop. All this is just to get the word out, “THC” HEALS BRAINS !
Jesus mate.
This is not a page for condensed life stories.
You are paranoid (blocked from the media) and deluded (gold) and you’re trying to be an advert for cannabis?
Marijuana is not as harmful as fine Scottish Whiskey, nor as addictive as tobacco. It is however very bad about suppressing violent tendencies and may even stifle ambition if overused. Cannabinoids, the drugs derived from cannabis, have a wide range of uses. And so far no one has ever been recorded as dying from the drug. It’s been in use, either legally or illegally for centuries and will probably continue to be used for centuries to come. The only question that remains is whether government will profit or suffer from this.
Overgrow the Government. Kudos to you, keep the fight strong and the seeds a plenty. This Canadian Salutes YOU!
If legalisation meant everyone would just smoke it and shut up about it, that would be great. Make it illegal to bore us to death with all the same same same half-baked platitudes. Or even boring us with the properly proven facts; the good ones as well as the bad ones that you would have us believe do not exist. Please please get it legalised and quietly go and smoke yourselves into a stupour, but please stop going on and on about it.
I don’t know why there is all this hatred for opiates -consider mixing your hashish with opium, both are ancient medicines. However, I’ve read an afghan farmer claiming, if using this recreationally, limit your opium use to once every 4 days.
This being said, I can’t understand why there is this mythos of marijuana being somehow stronger today. Landrace strains are some of my favorite, and some of the most potent. I think the scientists testing these percentages either used a different criteria, or were inept at either finding or growing decent marijuana.
https://poeticworldtruthsandcontemplations.wordpress.com/a-brief-history-of-cannabishempmarijuana/
https://poeticworldtruthsandcontemplations.wordpress.com/the-science-of-cannabis-and-cancer/
Dammit James!
That is extremely helpful, plant millions of potential runt male plants
all round the country , cannabis is air/wind pollinated
so lets just randomly release pollen all over the country
folk like their weed full of seeds .. right
perhaps we might ruin a few crops, but we get to feel like tree loving hippies allover again!
the boys in blue couldn’t of come up with a better plan themselves
The war on drugs was a mistake, we should move on. LSD research may one day unlock the mysteries of consciousness itself, possibly even the Singularity.
Cannabis is a great thing but what if this potentially harms the environment? I love what feed the birds are doing and getting the message out that this prohibition is wrong and ridiculous at this point. I smoke weed myself but theres evidence showing that cannabis can drain water from streams and animals being able to OD from eating it. Cannibis is a weed and possible could spread if given the chance. It should become legal because of all the benefits cannabis has to offer to us but does it offer anything to the environment or does it even take something?