H20 and 420

It’s harvest time—but is the drought going to affect the flowers? Will that impact the price of flowers at the dispensaries?

—Amy Wilson

Short answer: not really. Like you said, it’s harvest time. There is so much cannabis in the mountains right now, it’s kinda stupid. The biggest effect that the drought has had on the outdoor-marijuana industry is that more than a few unscrupulous folks feel like it’s OK to steal water. They just busted a kid in Winton (near Yosemite, in Madera County) for siphoning 1.5 million gallons of water for his 100-plant garden. The 19-year-old male faces fines of $25,000 for the plants, and $18,000 for stealing the water. The cops also destroyed the plants, which is kinda fucked up, because the boy is gonna need the money to pay his fines. I feel like the authorities should have made him harvest it, sell it—and then taken his money.

He’s not the only one. The news feeds have been full of stories about people stealing water for weed all over the state. To me, it’s another symptom of prohibition. If weed were legal, people would be able to legitimately pay for large sums of water without arousing suspicion. Of course, Big Agriculture and the Weed Lobby would probably be fighting in the streets over water rights. But that’s politics.

I’m more worried about this early-season rain creating mold and mildew problems so close to harvest time. If you have an outdoor garden, you can maybe give your plants a vigorous shake to remove some moisture, or perhaps hit them with some Serenade mildew spray. It’s Organic Materials Review Institute certified, so you shouldn’t have to worry too much. Enjoy your harvest and, as always, if you need help trimming, let me know.

What does Ngaio think of smoking weed under surveillance?

—ATChris

I’m not sure what you mean? Are you asking if I worry about all the various cameras and whatnot throughout the urban cityscape in which I live? Nah.

Remember: I’m not doing anything wrong. There is nothing wrong with stepping into a discrete location to take a puff or two. No one really cares, especially on the West Coast. And really, all they would have is a video of me smoking. They don’t have a way to prove I was smoking pot. I’m sure my lawyers could beat the rap. Boom.