What did it feel like to Grow back then ???

[TerpeneTom]

What did it feel like to grow and smoke back when the industry was in its infancy? It's amazing now as all I really feel is worry that my flowers won't look as good as the next guys lol.

I'm just thinking it must've felt pretty damn interesting, but also pretty damn scary.

 

[Shcrews]

what years are you talking about? the "industry" as i understand it began circa 2000 in california when dispensaries started popping up. but the black market existed long before then.

to answer your question, although i was pretty young then mind you,... growing weed back in those days was like taking candy from a baby. even the worst stuff would fetch over $3000 per pound, as long as it looked decent. strain hoarding was very prevalent back then, certain strains were known to sell for $10,000 per clone.

 

[TerpeneTom]

I suppose "industry" is the wrong term, "culture" is the word I was looking for.

I was reading Kesey and Thompson and they kinda talk about the "American Dream" and all that, and it seems like being involved with Cannabis kinda gave you the feeling of a cowboy or, really, living the American dream

 

[Lester Beans]

Well in the late 80's standing in a 4k room was quite scary because if caught you would be looking at 10 years. Not sleeping until the sun comes up because they usually kick doors in at night. Making sure you have a lawyer on speed dial. Spending a lot of time and money modifying vehicles with hidden compartments to transport an ounce stealth like, which was the only way or you were fucked silly if caught.

Not talking to family or friends for months on end. Living in the woods in the summer like an escapee. Trying to find someone to buy weed from or the opposite because people had to be vetted carefully, lots went down selling to cops.

10 years later feeling great getting caught with two z's and only getting three years probation and no time. Things are more relaxed but still sketchy.

Pulling off a large grow back in the day took balls and getting rid of it bigger balls. Frayed nerves that will never be right even if it became legal. Those stresses took a physical toll on a man.

Then present day, still not legal and certainly some risk involved. I don't play like that anymore, can't take the stress. I think about it when out back of a bar some 20 something kid hands me a dooby and blabs about his big grow and killer weed. Be nice to deck him just for the hell of it. People just don't know how it was and what its like to risk your life to grow killer herb for your family and friends. Maybe pay the grocery bill in the process.

Obviously I don't live in Cali, and I just hope to be able to grow some weed someday without worrying.

 

[Bush Dr]

IT was hard work, modifying street lights, etc, timers were old brass clockwork devices that you had to wire a relay to ...etc

It may be rosy to grow in parts of the USA, but try that in the UK and you can still get 14 yrs in jail ...fucking long way we've come in 80 yrs

 

[xavier7995]

Not really "long ago" but I first grew in the 90s in the Midwest...and they were behind the times so was like 1964

We grew outside, went to a few indoor ops with my parents during the 80s and early 90s that were just rooms full of florescent tubes, but that was not really the norm. It was terribly hard to find good grow info, you had to make friends with old hippies or bikers and just sort of go with their word. There was not as much bickering and light shit talking; though collectively, the people involved were much much more dangerous than now. I think it kind of made people behave better. We were not hip to mail order seeds so genetics was just growing seeds from the best weed you could find, though I more sophisticated growers were certainly hitting up the dutch. People would come back from California with mind blowing seedless weed, it just wasn't something we knew how to do in my locale.

Other than liking the culture/people a bit more; holy crap it's amazing to grow weed now. Not going to jail and minimal worry about people killing you for a lb is a breath of fresh air. Most folks I knew that were really into growing split for CA right around 2000 when it opened up and damn that was amazing, was a domestic Amsterdam.

Oh...and mexican brick weed could still be awesome sometimes.

 

[Lester Beans]

I sure wish I knew what it was like to grow worry free. I hope everyone that does appreciates what the old cats have done so they have the freedom. Trust fund growers are buying the beers as far as I'm concerned!

 

[St. Phatty]

I suppose "industry" is the wrong term, "culture" is the word I was looking for.

I was reading Kesey and Thompson and they kinda talk about the "American Dream" and all that, and it seems like being involved with Cannabis kinda gave you the feeling of a cowboy or, really, living the American dream

When $1K a quarter was a friendly price and 50 pounds was easily & semi-legally attainable ...

I think the early years of legalization will be looked at as Prime Years profit-wise.


It's a separate subject but ... to me it looks like the industry is headed towards a massive over-supply condition. From talking to grow supply managers, looking at maps, etc.

I think world Cannabis production will be at a peak in 2017 but who is going to smoke it all ?

Until they legalize in Singapore and we can legally export there.

 

[ctg]

Outdoors and then to custom boxes with floros in the early years, lots of paranoia and thievery. Has come a long way since, lots of ups and downs. Glad to be where we are but shouldn't become lazy or not be cautious. Interesting times for sure

 

[Lester Beans]

When $1K a quarter was a friendly price and 50 pounds was easily & semi-legally attainable ...

I think the early years of legalization will be looked at as Prime Years profit-wise.


It's a separate subject but ... to me it looks like the industry is headed towards a massive over-supply condition. From talking to grow supply managers, looking at maps, etc.

I think world Cannabis production will be at a peak in 2017 but who is going to smoke it all ?

Until they legalize in Singapore and we can legally export there.

50 lbs was semi legal??? I want to live on that planet!

I am sure there will be a surplus of cannabis, how can there not be. Everyone and their mother is growing now. The big difference is the guy with the proper high end herb will always have a buyer. Usually before the grow even happens.

The sheep will be happy with the hay. Can even use it for bedding!

Its getting harder and harder to find good proper weed. Surplus yes, quality not so much..

 

[Shovelhandle]

Had a mad landscaper / gardener mentor back in the 60s who grew the shit. I do not know strain details as he always put his own crazy name on shit (California Steam and Pim's Panatella) but he was the first I saw grow colas. Before that it was just leafy sativas that never budded in my climate.

 

[EastFortRock]

Way back in the 70's I grew Colombian seeds outdoor. We didn't know about light cycles causing flowering and they froze before they flowered, we smoked the leaves. We weren't afraid of the law , because the law wasn't actively looking for it at that time in my area. ( my neighbor grew his in his front yard!) No fear of the law at all, just the fear that my mom would find it.

 

[sourpuss]

Back around the year 2000 i remember seeds from nirvana seeds that shit all over most anything on the market today. 50 bucks for 10 seeds. Bag seed that had such an amazing array of phenos and effects.

I remember clones of og hashplant, og northern lights, og skunk the real skunk. I remember such blissful happy highs.... an effect i still long for but rarely find.

Still remember the chronic high grade sativa that made newbies puke. Bricked/compressed but mostly bud not shake. Dark brown earthy goodness incense....

 

[Hort1]

Stress and then more stress.Constantly thinking its the law knocking at the door.Every car door slamming outside causing major stress.You guys today will never understand.

 

[yesum]

Back in the 70's so few people grew and no internet, it was almost casual in a way. You could grow and few knew what the plant was. Into the 80's and that changed. Felony charge if they felt like it so big stress.

This was just small personal grows, not commercial. That would be big time stress at any time. Yeah, I do not miss those days at all. Just some of the strains that are all but lost now, the heirloom sativas.

 

[St. Phatty]

Back in the 70's so few people grew and no internet, it was almost casual in a way.

We grew when we were teenagers, in the early 70's.

Definitely did NOT account for animals eating the plants.

 

[Aota1]

I got into growing at a good time. 215 was a beautiful proposition! I always remember the first time I was convinced having a Dr's rec worked. Used to make kief boxes with a friend and sell at Saturday market in arcata. Also to the very first dispensary in town. I traded a box for some herb and about 5 of us were behind the bars smoking a pipe when Drake, the bicycle cop, rolled up. The guy who traded me had the pipe in his hand so the cop asked him if he had a prescription- which he did - and we all walked off red eyed. This was 99' and i was 19. Up to then I was still a little skeptical about the whole thing. After that I got my rec.

 

[Bud Green]

My best buddy was a very accomplished outdoor grower by 1975, in the lower part of NY state..
I was always amazed to visit and see it, and the buds were amazing! He grew a lot from seeds found in bags of red Columbian, great Mexicans, and the rare seed found in the real Thai sticks..
He also blew my mind when he first showed me how he cloned plants!

My first really successful outdoor grows weren't until around 1987 in the Everglades of SW. Florida.. Mother Nature did most of the hard work, so growing good buds was easy.
But the scary part was the fact that leo had spotter planes by then, and they searched the Everglades very intensely. Their sole purpose was searching for pot.
I taught myself how to hide it by putting each big plant right up against the south side of a very large shrub or bush..

My mind was blown when I found out that a friend couldn't wait to give me $160 for every ounce that I didn't want to keep for myself...

 

[Weird]

lol I started growing under prohibition before the internet and now I still have to play the same game with the same risk while dealing with the over flow of weed form legal states with no customers

things haven't changed for everyone and to be honest I don't trust legal people because you don't need one tenth the passion to be a legal grower you only need to see dollar signs

steep laws certainly filtered out a whole swatch of creepy fucks who only care about making a buck

here is an old grow buddy in a room of pot from the 90s some sensi serious and private stock afghani and NL

He always wanted to send them in to high times but was too afraid of the consequences and passed along many years ago.

.. I never thought I would be here now like this, that is for sure

 

[seeded]

I'm living the illicit life now and it's not fun. I've literally had to give up all the stoner friends I've had as they've all expected me to continually provide them with free herb and not only have they all become quite agitated when I've refused more than a few have then somehow justified to themselves relieving me of my garden because I'm "a greedy fuck breaking the law anyway".

Women. Where to begin? They've never shared my vision for cannabis, have never approved of me growing at all and since it's still quite illegal here and my garden is literally not even a foot away from my mattress I can't even bring a girl back here for the night. I can always go back to their place but at my age girls are trying to settle down and don't put up with not telling them about my life, never visiting my place, etc. for very long as they think I'm just using them to cheat and if I ever liked them enough to tell them the truth it's just going to end in me getting ripped, raided, having my plant count reduced or even being forced to give up growing entirely to maintain my freedom. Since that all goes against my life plan it makes any kind of relationship doomed before it even begins so I've given up on trying to date girls. Pubs, clubs and tinder are always there if I ever feel the urge but I've still got to be very careful about the people and the things I say and do so I can keep my garden which has made me an eternal bachelor. Over time I've grown to accept and embrace that life for the freedom it brings but I would happily give it up for a girl that truly shares my values and wants to grow old together as that's what life's meant to be about.

Have you ever stared death in the face? You'll get accustomed to knocks at the door eventually but when you open it and stare a couple of uniformed officers down like a deer in headlights you're gonna wish they really were a truck coming at you 100 mile an hour so you could be put out of your misery. It's a moment in time that never ends as you're caught between panic, trying to focus on their words and working out your escape path in case it all goes south. The relief when they walk away is second to none though.

All in all it's a really shitty position to be in and not much is going to change if it becomes legal. Friends are still going to want handouts, girls are going to want me to give up growing or grow commercially instead of for seed, the police will still be a source of fear as their version legality will come with surprise inspections, etc. It'll certainly be a weight lifted off my shoulders knowing prison sentences will be lessened but other than that nothing really changes so neither will I.