Oct. 2022 - Maryland Leaf

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Velleman talks with the Leaf about how his grow light company changed the business and lead to greater efficiency in the garden.

HOW PUFFCO FOUNDER & CEO ROGER VOLODARSKY IS REVOLUTIONIZING THE CANNABIS INDUSTRY, ONE AMAZING DEVICE AT A TIME. >> Pg . 34 THE TECH ISSUE #46 | OCT. 2022THE ENLIGHTENED VOICE FREE / LEAFMAGAZINES.COM INDEPENDENT CANNABIS JOURNALISM SINCE 2010 SMOKE TECH EVOLUTION From the simple pipe and bong to advanced laser dab rigs, vapes and more — learn how we got to today! >> Pg. 28 LEAF TECH ROUNDUP Leaf Nation staff and contributors share their favorite new gadgets and Cannabis tech products sure to change your life and high! >> Pg. 30 DUTCH LIGHTING INNOVATIONS Jair
>> Pg. 36

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Medical cannabis is for use only by a qualifying patient. There may be additional health risks associated with the consumption of cannabis or cannabis products for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding. Consumption of medical cannabis may impair your ability to drive a car or operate machinery. Please use extreme caution. Keep out of the reach of children and animals. @SunMedGrowers @SunMed.Growers @SunMed.LabsQ D Sun.Science.Smooth SunMedGrowers.com For the cannabis connoisseur. SunMed Pre-Rolls are taking it to the next level SUNMED 2.0: SunMed Slims Classic Pre-Rolls
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THREE NEW STRAINS YOU GOTTA TRY

At Grassroots, we pride ourselves on growing cannabis strains for every palate and we’re excited to add Tarts, MAC 1, and Cherry Burger to our trimmed flower lineup. Stop by your nearest Maryland dispensary to try these premium strains today!

Must be 18 years or older to view content. Medical cannabis is for certified patient use only. Consumption of medical cannabis may impair your ability to drive a car or operate machinery. Please use extreme caution. There may be health risk associated with cannabis use, especially during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Accidental consumption of cannabis by children or animals may result in severe adverse reactions. Keep cannabis out of the reach of children and animals. GRASSRO O TSC A N NABI S. C O M
You must be 18 years of age to view this content
09 EDITOR’S NOTE 10 NATIONAL NEWS 14 BUDTENDER Q&A 16 SHOP REVIEW 18 PATIENT PROFILE 20 TISSUE CULTURE COLLAB 24 STRAIN OF THE MONTH 28 EVOLUTION OF SMOKE TECH 30 LEAF NATION TECH ROUNDUP 34 PUFFCO’S ROGER VOLODARSKY 36 DUTCH LIGHTING INNOVATIONS 38 BEST CANNABIS APPS TO TRY 40 CONCENTRATE OF THE MONTH 44 CANNTHROPOLOGY 46 STONEY BALONEY 16 28 WYATT EARLY @ERRLYWYATT DREW BARDANA @DREWBARDANA DANIEL BERMAN @BERMANPHOTOS JUSTIN L. STEWART @JUSTNLSTEWART GREG MALCOLM @MARYLAND.CONNOISSEUR 34 ROGER VOLODARSKY PUFFCO’S FOUNDER AND CEO TALKS WITH THE LEAF’S BOBBY BLACK ON INNOVATION WORLD OF CANNABIS MUSEUM CANNTHROPOLOGY EXPLORING WHY HEMP AND HUMANITY HAVE BEEN SUCH A LONG PARTNERSHIP 44 SHOP REVIEW REVOLUTION RELEAF THE EVOLUTION OF SMOKE TECH From the pipe to the laser rig 30 LEAF NATION’S STAFF AND CONTRIBUTORS SHARE THEIR FAVE TECH GEAR TO CHECK OUT IN THIS EXCLUSIVE ROUNDUP. TECH ROUNDUP ocT. 2022 leafmagazines.com 6 OCT. 2022 [issue #46 THE tech ISSUE PATIENT OF THE MONTH ALESHIA WILSON SPEAKS ABOUT HER JOURNEY WITH FAITH AND CANNABIS 18
High-potency Select Essentials Disposables are now available in a variety of strains at all of your favorite Maryland dispensaries. Stop by and try one today! Convenience is Essential A person must be at least 18 years to view the content. Medical cannabis is for use by certified patients only. Consumption of medical cannabis may impair your ability to drive a car or operate machinery. Please extreme caution. There may be health risks associated with cannabis use, especially during pregnancy or breast-feeding.
For use only by qualifying, certified patients of Maryland Must be 18 years of age or older to view this content F r e s h f l o w e r , p u r e c o n c e n t r a t e s , s t a t e o f t h e a r t v a p e s a n d a v a r i e t y o f e d i b l e s S i n c e r e a n d c a r i n g s t a f f w h o l o v e t o l i s t e n P u r e , t e s t e d p r o d u c t s a t a f f o r d a b l e p r i c e s E v e r y t i m e y o u v i s i t t r u e W e l l n e s s , y o u w i l l b e s u r p r i s e d b y a l l o f o u r c a n n a b i s p r o d u c t s t o h e l p w i t h y o u r w e l l b e i n g W e k n o w w h a t y o u ’ r e l o o k i n g f o r a n d h o p e t o i m p r e s s y o u w i t h : C o m e s e e f o r y o u r s e l f a n d s p r e a d t h e w o r d ! D i s p e n s i n g w e l l n e s s d a i l y . Now offering delivery! 2 2 6 S P h i l a d e l p h i a B l v d A b e r d e e n , M D 2 1 0 0 1 4 1 0 3 0 6 6 0 9 9 A B E R D E E N 1 4 7 0 3 B a l t i m o r e A v e S u i t e B L a u r e l , M D 2 0 7 0 7 2 4 0 3 6 0 2 6 1 6 L A U R E L

WES

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MIKE

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TOM BOWERS

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DANIEL BERMAN

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EARLY MARYLAND

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WYATT EARLY

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O’HARA SHIPE ONLINE EDITOR ohara@leafmagazines.com

MEGHAN RIDLEY COPY EDITOR meghan@leafmagazines.com

ABOUT THE COVER

For our magazine’s first-ever Tech Issue, the founder and CEO of Puffco, Roger Volodarsky, was a worthy cover figure. From his company’s headquarters in downtown Los Angeles, Volodarsky oversees a growing empire of Cannabis consumption devices which haveforevermorphedthecommunity.

But as the Leaf’s Bobby Black makes clear in his fascinating profile, this is one tech mogul who would rather stay behind the scenes and let his products tell the story.

Making the pictures throughout this piece was the art of California-based freelance photographer Justin L. Stewart, who has freelanced for the Leaf since 2021.

CONTRIBUTORS

DREW BARDANA, ILLUSTRATION

DANIEL BERMAN, PHOTOS

BOBBY BLACK, DESIGN + FEATURES

JOSHUA BOULET, ILLUSTRATION

TOM BOWERS, FEATURES

EARLY, PRODUCTION

WYATT EARLY, FEATURES

STEVE ELLIOTT, NATIONAL NEWS

GREG MALCOLM, PHOTOS

TAYLOR MARTIN, FEATURES

JEFF PORTERFIELD DESIGN

JESSE RAMIREZ, DESIGN

MIKE RICKER, FEATURES

MEGHAN RIDLEY, EDITING

ZACK RUSKIN, FEATURES

O’HARA SHIPE, FEATURES

JUSTIN L. STEWART, PHOTOS

JAMIE VICTOR, DESIGN

DAN VINKOVETSKY, PHOTOS+REVIEWS

NATE WILLIAMS, FEATURES

WES ABNEY

Editor’s Note

Thanks for picking up the first Tech Issue of the Leaf!

When I first started smoking weed, the pinnacle of tech was turning an apple or a soda can into a smoking device. Personally, I always loved the apple pipe, as it turned into a healthy snack afterwards and there was no evidence left behind to get in trouble for!

Luckily for Cannabis lovers, the legalization movement has led to investment and innovation into fun and creative ways to get baked. From home infusers for making Cannabis cooking oil, honey and topicals, to the variety of vaporizers and gear for taking the perfect dab – there’s a plethora of new ways to consume the plant we all know and love.

This month’s cover story comes to us via Puffco Founder and CEO, Roger Volodarsky. Unless you’ve been stoned and living under a rock for the last few years, you likely know the name Puffco and have tried their line-up of amazing electronic vaporizers. Puffco has definitely changed the game for the portable consumption of Cannabis, and they continue to lead the way in combining tech with pot – including the release of new toys like the Proxy, and the super useful Hot Knife dab tool. Check out Bobby Black’s interview and dive into the world of Puffco, which we get a glimpse of on our iconic cover.

WITH MARYLAND

Exclusive Cannabis Journalism

As there’s no shortage of great companies making Cannabis tech these days, our Leaf team also compiled a selection of our favorite gear for getting high. Check out our roundup with innovations ranging from portable terp fridges to joint tips, and everything else you might need to up your stoner game or add to a holiday shopping list! While this is our first Tech Issue, I definitely expect to see it coming back for years to come as the world continues to embrace Cannabis use in a modern format.

So whether you’re an old school joint roller (we have a new machine for that) or the most trendy terp hunter, there’s a piece of tech to help you get more stoned – and as always, a bunch of other Leaf content for your enjoyment. Thanks for reading, and keep your e-nails charged and at low temps!

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ANTI-DOPING AGENCY CONTINUES CANNABIS BAN

The World Anti-Doping Agency is likely to keep a ban on marijuana use by athletes in 2023.

The agency continued the ban despite pressure to change the policy on Cannabis after U.S. sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson was barred from the Summer Olympic Games after testing positive last year.

With the continued ban on weed by the body charged with preventing drugs in international sports, athletes who test positive for marijuana in competition will face suspension from eligibility. However, last year WADA announced that it would conduct a scientific review to determine if pot should remain on the banned substances list – receiving the encouragement of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency to conduct the review, as well as broad support from athletes and politicians.

MIDWEST WICHITA DECRIMS POT; COUNTY COMPLAINS; MAYOR GETS SPICY

First, city council members in Wichita, Kansas (at the urging of the mayor) decided to stop enforcing the pot laws. Then, Sedgwick County commissioners threatened to bill the city when the county enforces the pot laws. As marijuana remains illegal in Kansas, that prompted Wichita Mayor Brandon Whipple to vigorously clap back at the the county.

The marijuana decriminalization ordinance was the mayor’s idea. Whipple called the discussion by Sedgwick County commissioners on a city ordinance change for marijuana possession a “political show.” The mayor added he doesn’t see the county having any legal basis for billing the city on the costs of prosecuting pot possession cases.

“The mayor added he doesn’t see the county having any legal basis for billing the city on the costs of prosecuting pot possession cases.”

County Commission Chairman David Dennis called on staff to look at the possibility of billing Wichita for expenses resulting from handling the cases in district court. “At what point do we start charging the City of Wichita for this process?” Dennis asked. “Because we’re going to bill them for all the people that go into our jail,” he threatened.

But as Mayor Whipple said, “It just feels like a bad civics class on YouTube. There’s no legal way to send us an invoice for the stuff that the county chooses to spend their money on. That’s not how this works.”

CALIFORNIA LAW PROTECTS CANNABIS USE OFF-THE-CLOCK

California will likely soon become the seventh state to protect workers from losing their jobs if they smoke marijuana when they are off the clock.

State lawmakers in August passed a bill to stop companies from punishing workers who fail certain types of drug tests. The analyses in question do not determine whether a person is high. Instead, they identify metabolites indicative of whether the person has used marijuana in recent days or weeks.

These tests use urine or hair samples to detect a substance the body makes when it breaks down THC. But the THC metabolites can stay in a person’s body for weeks after using marijuana, according to the Mayo Clinic. That shortcoming means that people who fail a marijuana test are often not impaired at all.

Assembly Bill 2188 protects workers from punishment for failing the aforementioned drug analyses – however, companies could still reprimand employees for failing other types. These include tests using saliva, which are reputedly better at determining if a person is currently high.

43% OF YOUNG ADULTS USE CANNABIS

Marijuana use among young adults reached an all-time high last year. In 2021, nearly 43 percent of individuals between the ages 19 and 30 said they had used Cannabis in the past 12 months.

The research was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and conducted by the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research. The Monitoring the Future report found a steady increase in marijuana usage in the age group over the past decade. The numbers rose from 29 percent in 2011 to 34 percent in 2016.

Monitoring the Future research has tracked substance use in the United States for more than three decades.

PREGNANT WOMEN

FOR WEED

a traffic stop in Alabama, a cop found a small amount of marijuana.

Ashley Banks, a 23-year-old woman, admitted to officers that she had smoked weed two days earlier. It was the very same day that Banks learned she was pregnant. She was six weeks along.

It was this disclosure – the fact that she was pregnant – that led Etowah County officials to keep her in jail. But this was done so without a trial, and she was locked up for the next three months –charged with ”chemical endangerment” of her fetus.

Banks fell victim to a weird Alabama law that advocates say Etowah County enforces with disturbing enthusiasm. Pregnant women arrested for drug offenses aren’t even allowed to post bail and go free (the way everyone else is). They have to stay in state custody: either in jail, or in a residential drug rehab program.

The “logic” is that the women are supposedly a danger to their fetuses. Therefore, they supposedly need to be imprisoned by the state for the duration, in order to “protect their pregnancies.”

sports

TENNIS STAR UPSET ABOUT POT AT US OPEN

ounces of weed will be legal to possess if Maryland’s Question 4 is approved by voters.

pounds of illegal Cannabis was discovered in a Salt Lake City warehouse in September.

pounds of untaxed marijuana was seized in a Wolf Creek, Ore. bust last month.

of Republicans believe legal Cannabis businesses should have the same rights as other legal businesses.

Nick Kyrgios was in the second set of his second-round match against Benjamin Bonzi at the U.S. Open in late August – when out of the blue, he turned to the chair umpire and started complaining about a whiff of marijuana being in the air at Louis Armstrong Stadium.

“...he turned to the chair umpire and started complaining about a whiff of marijuana being in the air at Louis Armstrong Stadium.”

Up a set and at 4-3 on serve in the second, Kyrgios asked the umpire to issue a warning to the crowd after claiming he saw and smelled someone smoking weed.

On the way to his bench during a changeover, the volatile 27-year-old petulantly sniped, “You don’t even want to remind anyone not to do it?”

in medical marijuana sales for July made up Colorado’s lowest total since January 2014.

market loss, on average, is experienced by pharmaceutical companies after a state legalizes weed.

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WITH A GUITAR in his hands and a straight tube by his side, Max Needleman is a classic example of just how well music and Cannabis go together. Pay him a visit at Verilife in Westminster to find out what “being obsessed with guitar culture” is all about – and of course, for some amazing Cannabis recommendations.

MARYLAND LEAF BUDTENDER OF THE MONTH

MAX NEEDLEMAN

WHERE DID YOU GET YOUR PASSION FOR MUSIC AND PLAYING GUITAR? My dad has always been a huge influence – he was always into listening to classic rock. I am kind of grateful he always pushed me toward guitar lessons. I also went to a summer camp at Park School, where you would bring a guitar, learn music, and play concerts at the end of each day. Jack White of the White Stripes was also a big influence on me learning guitar and being obsessed with guitar culture.

HOW DOES CANNABIS INFLUENCE THE MUSIC YOU PLAY AND LISTEN TO? There was a point where I was reflecting and saying to myself, ‘I’m decent, but not sure about making a career out of this.’ When I went to college in Savannah, Georgia I started to smoke more and play for my roommates. They gave me confidence in how good I was, and then I met a professor who was an expert in sound design. That influenced me to listen to my recordings and get better. Cannabis makes me more open-minded, allowing the music to flow and happy accidents to occur when playing.

WHAT ABOUT CANNABIS AND TECHNOLOGY FASCINATES YOU?

I’ve been really interested in Puffco Peaks lately and how well they can match form and function in their devices. I’ve always had a straight tube – I don’t need all the percolators in bongs these days. What makes me want to go over to the dab side is the Puffco Peak, because of how easy it is to use.

WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO GET INTO THE CANNABIS INDUSTRY? It was a perfect storm during the pandemic. I was doing my side thing teaching music. I even delivered this very magazine at one point for Maryland Leaf. A friend of my uncle recognized me and offered me a job. I quickly realized how easy it was for me to talk about Cannabis on a regular basis and make it meaningful for patients. I’ve been here for the past year and it has been really amazing.

VERILIFE

700 CORPORATE CENTER CT WESTMINSTER, MD VERILIFE.COM | @VERILIFEMD (443) 952-4127 | 9AM-7PM DAILY

HOW GOOD OF A JOB DO YOU THINK CURRENT POS PROVIDERS ARE DOING FOR THE CANNABIS INDUSTRY? There is always room for improvement in a POS system. I get it, there

has to be a very formal process of communicating sales with the MMCC, but it could always be better. Sometimes POS systems limit what a budtender can do without calling their manager to do specific tasks – like voiding sales. Also when the wi-fi is down, the system can be laggy and we have to go back when we get wi-fi back to adjust everything and make sure it is accurate.

DO YOU SEE TECHNOLOGY CHANGING THE JOB OF BUDTENDERS IN THE FUTURE?

I think when people are coming in here, they are looking for a personal experience that cannot be replaced with technology. We used to do a lot of curbside pickup, which limits the time spent with budtenders and rules out a lot of the potential questions patients have about products. This industry could potentially see deliveries by drone in the future, but I’m sure that is a long way out.

PHOTO by
“CANNABIS MAKES ME MORE OPEN-MINDED, ALLOWING THE MUSIC TO FLOW AND HAPPY ACCIDENTS TO OCCUR WHEN PLAYING.”
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REVOLUTION RELEAF

By the time I entered the waiting room, my nose was filled with a bouquet of rich Cannabis scents that could not be denied. The staff here is knowledgeable and focused on meeting patients’ needs as they come, with a versatile group of budtenders that are ready and eager to help. If you’re looking for a dispensary with positive vibes flowing through Laurel, Revolution Releaf is the spot.

FLOWER

The sheer number of strains this shop has available is extremely impressive, with something for lovers of every different flavor of fire. Whether you want high-THC or high-terpene flower, or a perfect blend of the two, they have what it takes on their shelves to create the perfect regimen. With a menu consisting of all of Maryland’s favorite growers, you can’t go wrong.

CONCENTRATES

For the dab connoisseurs out there, this shop carries a wide selection of different forms of concentrates including live resin, terp sap, RSO and many other forms of hydrocarbon extract. I was happy to see a fat grip of Sunmed Labs concentrates on the menu – they have been my go-to lately for an affordable-yet-tasty dab.

EDIBLES

From the newest of the new to our classic recipes and flavors we have been eating since the first days of the program, all of Maryland’s best edibles can be found here. It’s awesome to explore the range of products featured like Evermore Discos – with many different flavors and potency variations. And of course, there’s lots of gummies too!

QUICK HIT

The staff at this store is curating an experience that makes Cannabis approachable for anyone looking to use it medicinally. With the deep knowledge they have of the very products they are selling, patients can feel at ease and comfortable asking questions and going deeper about the options on the shelf. Be sure to stop in and say hello when you are passing through the Laurel area.

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aleshia wilson

WHAT WOULD JESUS DO?

It’s a spiritual question that has been asked for many centuries.

For Aleshia Wilson, a Baltimore City-raised Christian, it was an inquiry that weighed heavily on her mind as she debated entering the world of medical Cannabis four years ago.

“I had mixed feelings,” said the 27-year-old, who has since helped create a work culture that has won Baltimore Magazine’s Best Dis pensary for three consecutive years.

“I wasn’t sure how God felt about it,” she added. “For me, smoking was something I felt borderline shame about for a long time. It was just this feeling that I might be doing something that would disappoint God.”

Known to patients as ‘Lee Lee,’ GreenLabs’ longest-tenured employee has now been a patient care specialist for over three years. Before getting offered the chance to join the industry, Aleshia was a single mother working through a painful divorce. She was also struggling to provide a better life for herself and her daughter as she worked an overnight shift at Royal Farms that didn’t fuel her passions.

“At that time, I lacked confidence and a vision for my future,” the Nashua Academy Foundation graduate said. “I didn’t have this big dream, but I knew the life I wanted to live. So I journaled and dove myself into the Bible every night, clinging closer to God. I believe he equipped me and prepared me for what was to come.”

Aleshia had been a part-time recreational user since the age of 17, but that was the extent of her knowledge regarding the plant. In a trial by fire, she hit the ground running in the summer of 2018 when the dispensary opened.

“It was perfect timing,” she recalled. “I didn’t have the Cannabis knowledge that everyone else on the team seemed to have. I felt so small. I was just this kid from the projects that didn’t know a whole lot about Cannabis. But I had this overwhelming sense that God had sent this challenge to me and that he would sustain me.”

She prayed feverishly, hoping that it was indeed God’s path she was following, and not her own.

“I thought, ‘If God led me here, this may not be bad,’” Aleshia said. “I just felt like it’s a natural plant that grows from the Earth. And God created the Earth, so it can’t be all bad.”

Aleshia’s knowledge has grown with each day behind the counter, and expanded at night with her own personal experiments. As pa tients happily boasted about the improvement in their quality of life, Aleshia found more peace with what she previously perceived as a conflict between her Christian beliefs and Cannabis usage.

“It shined a whole new light on the subject,” she said. “I began to learn about all the benefits and everything that Cannabis can do. I used to just use it for sleep. Now I can say I use it for appetite, sleep and giggles.”

Aleshia has found a consistent routine, ingesting 10 to 15 milligrams of Dixie’s Awakening tablets at lunch time, providing a “good energy boost” that leaves her “uplifted and focused.” Most evenings, she rolls up a Backwoods blunt and pulls on a relaxing indica strain. If she has aches or pains after a long day of standing, she’ll rub an Avexia 1:1 balm on her body, exclaiming, “It works wonders!”

The industry has been kind to her, Aleshia says. A full-time schedule has helped provide a home for her and her daughter. The divorcee has also rejoined the dating scene, meeting her current companion, Leon, within the industry.

“I had closed myself off to love,” she admits. “But I didn’t think that was what God wanted for me. So I made a deal with myself that the next person who asked me out, I had to say yes to. I met Leon and we just hit it off. We have so much in common, it’s just a magical, beautiful, amazing thing. And we continue to build and grow.”

The two share a love for both Cannabis and Jesus. During the pandemic, Aleshia and Leon reaffirmed their commitment to their faith, receiving a mutual baptism. For Aleshia, it was the second baptism of her life.

“I’ve always been a spiritual person and just naturally draw closer to God,” she said. “I feel like my faith is growing and growing, and his hands are all over it. Things have really been coming together in my life. So I just wanted to rededicate myself and confess to the world my love of God.”

With all the time she spends in prayer and at the dispensary, Aleshia understands her life is a bit different than others. When asked once more ‘WWJD?’ – Aleshia said she believes if Mary Jane and Jesus were to sit down, they may find some commonalities.

“He may not be ready to roll up a joint and smoke with you, but I don’t know if he’d be above using an edible or a topical,” she laughed.

Aleshia hopes her story can encourage those who have felt shame or confliction in regards to their religion and using Cannabis that it is OK to seek out both.

“I believe the Lord provides us with many resources, including the healing remedies of Cannabis,” she said. “But we should always be mindful of our consumption habits and try our best to track and manage them well.”

“For anyone who is struggling,” she added, “my advice is to seek God first always! One of my favorite verses to recall during trying times is Psalm 55:22. ‘Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken.’”

“FAITH IS THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR, THE EVIDENCE OF THINGS NOT SEEN.”
HEBREW 11:1 KJV
FOR A BETTER LIFE
“I was just this kid from the projects that didn’t know a whole lot about Cannabis. But I had this overwhelming sense that God had sent this challenge to me and that he would sustain me.”
OCT. 2022 18 leafmagazines.com patient of the month
CANNABIS
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TISSUE CULTURE

HOLD YOUR BREATH, make a wish and count to three. It may not be Willy Wonka’s chocolate room, but Matt Taylor believes Curio Wellness’ new partnership with Clemson University is going to lead to a superior genetic bank of Cannabis strains the world has never seen.

“In a perfect world, there’d be 1,000 strains available on the market today,” said Taylor, the Director of Applied Science at Curio Wellness. “But let’s say you only have eight grow rooms. In those eight grow rooms, there’s only four tables. So you can only grow 32 cultivars at a time. You’re going to need a lot of space to hold those other 968 strains.”

Tissue culture, Taylor insists, is the way of the future. Placing “micro-cuttings” into test tubes that are then stored and secured in a tissue culture lab could allow for the storage of 1,000 cultivars in a 2,000-foot-square space.

“That’s the gene bank,” said Taylor, who holds a doctorate degree in horticultural science from North Carolina State University. “Then whenever you want to [grow a certain strain], you just bring it out.”

In June, the Clemson University College of Ag riculture, Forestry and Life Sciences announced a two-year partnership with Curio Wellness. The project kicked off in August as first-year Clemson graduate students entered an internship program in which they will spend subsequent summers working in concert with Curio.

Michael Bronfein, Curio Wellness’ chief exec utive officer, said this latest research collabora tion is an example of the company’s continued commitment to innovation that reimagines the way medical Cannabis is cultivated and delivered to patients. “At Curio, everything we do is rooted in scientifically-derived methods and processes,” said Michael Bronfein, the company’s chief executive officer. “This research partnership with Clemson is a prime example of how Curio is investing in the future of medical Cannabis for our patients and everyone in need

of safe, effective and reliable health solutions.”

Curio states the aim of the project is to conduct research that advances plant tissue science for the entire medical Can nabis industry, protecting plants from viral patho gens – in turn, improving production efficiency.

“This project is unique in that both organi zations will conduct research using our individual plant collections,” said Project Leader Jeff Adelberg.

Adelberg is an expert in plant tissue culture and a horticulture professor at Clemson. He has been assigned to lead both the university and Curio Wellness in the study. Clemson will be restricted to conducting hemp-based CBD studies due to South Carolina state laws, while Curio’s team will be using their Mary land-based Cannabis operations to study the plant. By law, industrial hemp must have less than 0.3% THC, while marijuana may contain between 10 and 100 times that concentration. By contrast, hemp has higher concentrations of CBD.

“Research conducted at Clemson will be shared with Curio for use on their plants in Maryland,” said Adelberg. “They have the medical expertise to create the best products from Can nabis. This collaboration creates an opportunity for researchers from both institutions to use their knowledge to benefit people across the globe.”

“It’s really exciting,” added Taylor. “You don’t really see formal universities having partnerships with [Cannabis companies]. This is one of the first of its kind.”

The teams will also study how to utilize tissue culture to reduce viral pathogens such as Hop Latent Viroid which began puzzling California scientists and devastating crop yields in 2017.

“Viruses are an industry-wide issue,” Taylor said. “By utilizing tissue culture, you stay ahead of the viroid. Whether we’re talking about Can nabis, horticulture or agriculture, viruses can be devastating to an entire industry. Even the USDA has gene banks for grapes and straw berries. They keep everything in tissue culture because of viruses.”

Ultimately, being able to exper iment with a wide variety of strains is the key, as fluctuations are often seen from cultivar to cultivar.

“There’s a lot of genetic diversi ty within that species,” Taylor said. “We want to get [our Cannabis] growing and have it be super happy. Every strain is different, but there are little things you can fine tune to make them all happy.”

With the heart of a horticultur ist and the dedication of an Eagle Scout, Taylor believes this project has wings that will take off and rewrite how the industry maintains genetic profiles.

“Clemson University is recognized as one of the top agricultural and horticultural schools in the world,” Taylor said. “Through our partner ship, we are building the knowledge base for Cannabis tissue culture, which in its current state is inadequately understood. The ultimate goal is genetic preservation, which will enable us to continue cultivating high quality, plant-based medicine for patients in Maryland and beyond.”

“This collaboration creates an opportunity for researchers from both institutions to use their knowledge to benefit people across the globe.”
Project Leader Jeff Adelberg
CURIO WELLNESS teams up with Clemson University’s College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences to continue innovating the best Cannabis products Matt Taylor, Curio Wellness Director of Applied Science.
20
the tech issue ocT. 2022 leafmagazines.com
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PODCAST THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS #187 MMA AND CANNABIS #189 IT’S A WEIRD WORLD AFTER ALL #190 DITCHING BOOZE FOR BUDS WATCH ON LEAF LIFE PODCAST V2 LISTEN EVERYWHERE THIS MONTH: MARRIAGE & WEED 188# Marijuana products may be purchased or possessed only by persons 21 or older. This product has intoxicating effects and may be habit-forming. Marijuana can impair concentration, coordination and judgment. Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug. There may be health risks associated with consumption of this product. For use only by adults 21 and older. Keep out of reach of children.
STRAIN OF THE MONTH leafmagazines.com OCT. 2022 AMNESIA OG24

Amnesia OG from Culta is a great way to wind down the summer months and transition into a very mellow fall. Truly a delicious flower, the Amnesia OG reminds me of a fruity Jack Herer, but with a way deeper headspace and a little bit of earthiness. The flower tested at over 3% total terps – mostly the heavy-hitting but deliciouslyfruity varieties. There are strong notes of tree fruits wafting from this flower, making it a great strain for transitioning to the autumn months, as it complements the local orchard smells beautifully.

Beyond the deliciously bold fruit smells, the high and smoke is absolutely excellent. It is rare to find a flower that makes it to market with such a good cure on it, but the post-harvest team at Culta nailed the Amnesia OG. The joint I rolled had a perfect, slow, even burn and the smoke was full and flavorful. You can really appreciate a well-cured flower in the quality of the smoke itself, and taking the time to savor this strain will result in a very rich and tasty toke.

TESTING 38.89% TOTAL CANNABINOIDS 3.31% TOTAL TERPS .9% MYRCENE .74% LIMONENE .6% CARYOPHYLLENE .26% LINALOOL .22% HUMULENE .19% PINENE

As for the effects, buckle up. This heavy dose of myrcene, caryophyllene and linalool will have you in for a heavy and stoney time – but there is quite a dollop of limonene there to help focus the high. A formidable pain reliever as well as stress reducer, the Amnesia OG is a stellar example of medicine in Maryland’s market. As autumn starts creeping into your senses and the leaves fall to the ground, make sure this flower is there to fully usher in the crisp vibes of the changing seasons.

REVIEW by TAYLOR MARTIN for MARYLAND LEAF | PHOTO by GREG MALCOLM @MARYLAND.CONNOISSEUR
Taking the time to savor this strain will result in a very rich and tasty toke.
CULTA.IO | @CULTAIG
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THE EVOLUTION OFSMOKETECH

We all know that humanity has been using Cannabis for thousands of years, but the ways in which we've consumed it have continued to change with the progression of time and technology. The Leaf’s resident cannthropologist Bobby Black lays out the various methods by which our forebears have imbibed the sweet smoke of our favorite herb throughout history.

THE BONG

THE PIPE

The earliest smoking pipes on record – discovered inside Egyptian tombs – were made of copper and dated from around 2000 B.C.E. Wooden pipes became popular during the Iron Age, followed by chalk and clay pipes in the 1600s, iron pipes in the 1700s and corn cob pipes in the 1800s – before glass became king in the late 20th century.

The tubular type of water pipe known as a bong (from the Thai word baung, meaning “cylindrical wooden tube”) has been around almost as long as civilization itself. The oldest bong ever was discovered in Russia in 2013 –made of solid gold and dating back around 2,400 years to the Scythian tribes of Eurasia. Other ancient bongs found in Ethiopia have been carbon dated to around 1300 C.E. Bongs were apparently popular in China during the Ming Dynasty, then spread to the West via the Silk Road around the 17th century.

THE HOOKAH THE CHILLUM

A kind of hybrid water pipe/vaporizer with a long hose mouthpiece, the hookah originated in the northwestern prov inces of India, along the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan, around a millennia ago. Originally fash ioned from a coconut shell base and tube, they use hot coals to heat dried herbs from below.

The chillum is a form of simple conical pipe originally made out of either clay or cow and bull horns. A small stone is often placed inside the stem in place of a screen to keep from inhaling the material to be burned. The chillum – or “holy pipe” as it is known by Indian Sadhus who’ve used it in their rituals for centuries – originated in Asia but eventually made its way to Africa, then to Jamaica in the 1930s, where the Rastafarians also adopted it into their spiritual practices.

28 THE tech ISSUE

THE JOINT/SPLIFF/BLUNT

First invented in Alcoy, Spain during the 1500s, rolling papers quickly spread to France, then throughout the rest of the modern world in the centuries that followed – eventually becoming the most common method of smoking weed in America during the 20th century. (For the whole history of rolling papers, check out the Cannthropology column in our Oct. 2021 issue).

Blunts – or Cannabis rolled in tobacco leaves – take their name from the Phillies Blunt brand of cigars, typically used to roll them. It is believed that the blunt originated in the Caribbean during the 19th century when workers from India first brought “ganja” (the Hindi term for flower) to Jamaica, where tobacco was cheap and available. Then during the late 1980s, a large number of Caribbean immigrants moved to New York City – where hip-hop music and culture were just beginning to take off – which quickly popularized the practice.

GLASS

Long ago, enterprising stoners figured out that makeshift pipes and bongs could easily be jerry-rigged, or “MacGyvered,” out of various household items. The most common of these self-built smokeware apparatuses were made from fruit (particularly apples) and small beverage bottles – most notably old Sobe bottles –which had a thinner layer of glass at the bottom that could easily be punctured to insert a bowl.

THE GRAVITY BONG

THE DAB RIG/ TORCH / NAIL / BANGER

Though glass blowing itself dates back to around 3000 BCE, the first pipes made of glass wouldn’t emerge until the Victorian Era – but it wasn’t until the invention of the much tougher borosilicate glass in the late 19th century that the idea began to catch on. Though glass pipes and bongs first became popular for Cannabis use in the 1960s, it was “Godfather of Glass” Bob Snodgrass who elevated the artform and brought them into the mainstream with the “heady” colorchanging pieces he sold on Dead tours throughout the 1980s.

THE VAPORIZER

What distinguishes vaporizers from other smokeware devices is that they use indirect heat rather than fire or combustion to heat the Cannabis. Believe it or not, a form of vaping Cannabis actually dates back to the 5th century B.C. – as evidenced by Greek scribe Herodotus, who wrote about Egyptians heating hemp seeds with stones and inhaling the vapors. “Eagle Bill” Amato, known as the “Father of Vapor,” introduced the first modern vaporizer (powered with a heat gun) at the Amsterdam Cannabis Cup in 1993. Six years later, German company Storz & Bickel released a desktop electric vaporizer called the Volcano that set the new standard for decades to come. Eventually, much smaller vaporizers the size and shape of a pen were developed.

The concept behind the gravity bong is to use air pressure rather than one’s lung power to draw the smoke out of a joint or bowl, then forcefully push that smoke down one’s throat. Originating as MacGyverisms (typically made out of two or three-liter plastic soda bottles), gravity bongs were eventually professionally designed and manufactured – most notably by Grav Labs and Stundenglass.

When BHO started becoming popular in the late 2000s/ early 2010s, a new way was devised to smoke them. A “nail” made of titanium or quartz (or later, ceramic) was placed in the stem of a bong instead of a bowl and heated with a handheld blowtorch, after which a “dab” of concentrate was smeared onto it, then typically covered with a glass/quartz “dome” or “globe” to capture the smoke and prevent burns. This dome-andnail setup was eventually replaced by the honey-hole/ banger most commonly used today.

THE VAPE PEN

CARTRIDGE

Though the first “Smokeless Non-Tobacco Cigarette” featuring a “cartridge” was patented in the 1960s, it was really the “Cig-a-Like” in 2003 (invented by Chinese pharmacist Hon Lik) that would serve as the prototype for the modern vape pen. Coincidentally, the flood of new e-cigs entering the market in the late 2000s perfectly synchronized with the spike in popularity of honey/hash oil, eventually establishing the vape cartridge as one of the most popular ways to consume Cannabis concentrates.

In the 2010s, building on the popularity of dab rigs and vape pens, some enterprising entrepreneurs began developing combinations of the two. First came the e-nail – a plug-in nail heated with electricity rather than a torch, enabling better distribution of heat and temperature control. But it was the invention of the first fully electronic rig, the Puffco Peak, in 2018 that truly changed the game forever (see our interview on page 34 of this edition). Today, there are several e-rigs on the market (including the iSpire, Bello and Carta) — all of which enable one to enjoy high quality, torch-free dabs just about anywhere.

THE E-RIG THE FUTURE

What far-out gadgets might the stoners of the future use to get high? Will it be solar-powered pipes? Microwave vapes, maybe? Laser rigs, or even nuclear bongs? Honestly, we have no idea … what we do know is that the boundless imagination and ingenuity of Cannabis users will continue to drive innovations in smokeware and other technologies for decades to come.

STORY by BOBBY BLACK @BOBBYBLACK420/LEAF NATION | ILLUSTRATIONS by DREW BARDANA @DREWBARDANA
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DO-IT-YOURSELFERS

TECH ROUNDUP

BEED ROLLING MACHINE PUFFCO PROXY

Meet the “Nespresso of Cannabis.” These countertop machines launched in 2022 are capable of automatically filling an empty cone with prepackaged half-gram pods of ground Cannabis, delivering a pre-roll to your waiting hand in around 20 seconds. For anyone who has mobility issues in their hands or just doesn’t know how to roll, Beed offers easy access and consisten cy. There are five strain-specific varieties available, and all of the pods are recyclable. With this amazing new device, consumption bars can offer people a simple way to roll up some weed – similar to the way self-pouring technology has revolutionized the bar experience. beed.co @beed_co

LEVO C OIL DIFFUSER

REVIEW BY KATHERINE WOLF @KATADELLIC Budding (pun intended) home canna-chefs can use the LĒVO C to infuse large batches of oil, butter, honey, milk and more. Available in multiple colors, it’s cuter than your favorite countertop coffee maker (and just about as easy to use). The LĒVO C is one of the simplest diffusers to set up and features an ultra-sleek, touch-activated interface with precise time and temperature controls. The best part? All the removable pieces are dishwasher-safe for a painless cleanup process – because having to clean a machine by hand after eating a bunch of edibles sounds like just about the worst thing ever. levooil.com @levo_oil

The breakout hit of 2022 is an electronic hash pipe that makes smoking concentrates as in stinctive as humanly possible – bringing versatility as its greatest superpower. With a flick of the wrist, you can drop this miniature marvel into an endless array of pipe or bubbler attach ments, glass bangers, and even a disco ball. Proxy offers tasty hits, all in a package that’s dis creet yet instantly identifiable. Like the basic Peak model, this has four variable heat settings (505°F -560°F) and haptic feedback, but makes use of the same 3D chamber as the upgraded Peak Pro. New accessories include the travel pack and flower-smoking attachments. puffco.com @puffco

ARDENT

REVIEW BY KATHERINE WOLF @KATADELLIC Dubbed the “Easy Bake Oven” for edibles, it really has never been easier to get baked off some baked goods with the Ardent FX. Equipped with precision heaters and timed cycles, this thing can activate and infuse up to one ounce of flower or concentrate at a time. Perhaps its most valuable feature, the Ardent FX optimizes terpene retention and cannabinoid ac tivation with custom settings for decarbing CBD and THC/CBG. But that’s not all, folks! Shift this cutting-edge culinary ganja gadget into “bake” mode to actually bake your infused goodies all within the same device. Yeah, technology is crazy these days. ardentcannabis.com @ardentllc

Leaf Nation puts some of the Cannabis industry’s hottest products to the test
FX
30 leafmagazines.com THE tech ISSUE ocT. 2022

HITOKI TRIDENT

Be honest, who doesn’t want to see their weed lit up by a laser beam? Every time you activate the Trident, a beam of light ignites your ground-up weed from behind a tinted, vision-safe chamber. This feels like you’re using something from a Sharper Image catalog. There are three temperature settings and even though the Trident is a combus tion device, it does leave you with a pile of spent herb. Trident has a silicon mouthpiece or hookah-style hose that’s perfect for passing around, if you can manage to look away from its hypnotic light long enough. hitoki.com @hitokilaser

TERPOMETER

Now timing the perfect dab is as easy as opening the automatic garage door. This handy, keychain device contains a heat sensor that measures the tempera ture of whatever surface you hold it a half inch from, displaying it on a small LCD screen. When it registers between 500°F-550°F, the screen turns green to let you know it’s time to dab. Thermometer IR produces accurate results, switches eas ily from Fahrenheit to Celsius, has a screw-on dab tool attachment, and you can even set it to buzz at you when you’ve hit the part of its range that you prefer. No more timers, or trying to line up a troublesome laser beam to get results. theterpometer.com @theterpometer

GORDO SCIENTIFIC RIPTIP

It’s 2022, people – wasteful paper filters that hit harshly are old news. It’s time to take your rolling game into the future with the Rip Tip. These reusable tips made of high-quality borosili cate glass are hand-blown by Gordo Scientific in Denver. Crafted to create a smoother and more sustainable sesh, the signature riptide channels that optimize airflow are where the “Rip” Tip gets its name. Aptly named indeed, these things sure do rip. Available in various diameters, the nine millimeter is the OG size and most popular. As a general rule of thumb, a seven to eight millimeter is ideal for personal pearls under a gram, while anything over 10 millimeters should be reserved for a trip to Mars. gordosci.com @gordoscientific

REVIEWS by LEAF NATION STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS | PHOTOS by DANIEL BERMAN @BERMANPHOTOS

TECH ROUNDUP

the Cannabis industry’s hottest products put to the test

710 LABS TERP COOLER

Preserving terps is a full-time job. That’s why concentrate conservationists 710 Labs created a travel-friendly way of keeping hash and rosin at the perfect temperature. With an average battery life of eight hours, this lunchbox-shaped cooler holds around five standard-sized jars comfortably. The device works like a soda can fridge, cooling down the metal plate inside to bring the contents to your preferred settings. The carrying case is netted in all the right spots to allow proper ventilation and includes chargers for the home, car and USB. This little droid is the perfect option for road trips, hotel stas and consumption events. 710labs.com @710labs

FOCUS V CARTA 2

Focus V has revamped its popular e-rig device to create an experience that absolutely rips. With a solid, professional feel, the Carta 2 fea tures an OLED screen that gives you up-to-the-minute temp readings, a session timer, and lighting custom ization that can be controlled with either the three buttons on the unit or an accompanying app. The improved glass chamber holds an impressive amount of water as well as smoke, and the battery ran about 25-30 dabs on a full charge. With a temperature range of 365°F-635°F that’s adjustable to a single degree, Carta 2 captures the flavor from lower temp dabs while delivering the clouds we all crave. focusv.com @focus.v

ALCHEMY JARS

The next level of hash storage is here. Alchemy Jars was founded by glassblower Patrick Lee, better known as @purpskurp710 on Instagram. Sick of dried out, crumbly jars of rosin, Lee decided to solve the problem himself and drew from existing tech to create a solution and offer it to the masses. Alchemy Jars utilize double-walled, vacuum-sealing technology and work the same way high-end water bottles do to insulate and protect their contents from the environment surrounding the container. The jars work great and function as advertised, keeping your rosin fresh and full of terps – just how it was meant to be.

alchemyjars.com @alchemyjars

32 leafmagazines.com THE tech ISSUE ocT. 2022
CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE

G PEN HYER

Turn your bongs and bubblers into lung-busting dab machines with the newest product from G Pen. Improving upon the success of the Connect, Hyer contains seven times the battery power with a 1,500mAh rechargeable battery, five session settings, and five variable heat settings ranging from 407°F-803°F. Hyer is a tethered-style unit, connecting the battery and concentrate tank with a magnetic cable. Most of the pieces on the Hyer are magnetic and the included dab tool even screws into the cap – making it easy to keep together when not in the included hemp carrying case. Hyer performs well on all concentrates, but exceptionally well with resins and shatters. gethyer.com @letsgethyer

ZENCO FLOW

Raise a glass of vapor and embrace the most social innovation to Cannabis tech since passing a joint. The Zenco puts concentrates “on tap” by using an inno vative function that turns a normal vape cartridge hit into a classy and tantalizing experience of drinking your vapor. Simply press down on the glass and watch the vapor swirl inside with tasty terps and cannabinoids, wait until full, and then sip by breathing in through the straw or the glass (to get huge hits). Shareable without having to swap spit from somebody’s pocket dab pen, the glasses are easily washed and available in sets for entertaining. Perfect for socializing and micro or macro tokes, the Zenco is the ideal tabletop unit to transform your cartridge experience – and can easily be packed onthe-go for your next sesh! thezenco.com @thezencolife

ISPIRE DAAB

The newest device from Ispire does away with ceramic heating elements and instead opts for a more natural, induction heating. The unit looks like the Dewalt of dabs, fitting in your hand as easily as a drill. Load your concen trate into a small glass bucket and a metal ring encased therein is heated up within the glass chamber, bringing it up to temperature and vaporizing your concentrate in a way that feels closer to a traditional dab. A sturdy desktop piece, the daab adjusts in five-degree increments from 410°F-805°F, comes with its own hardshell case for traveling, and is able to go around 29 dabs on a full charge. getispire.com @getispire

DABX MARK.1

TERPHOGZ EDITION

Perhaps the most natural feeling of all the bong-into-rig attachments. Sliding into your home glass pieces, DabX is a titanium device with some interesting differences. A double-click begins the warming of the unit before triggering a 12-second heat burst, according to four different temperature curves. The device doesn’t go above 470°F, so it’s less about heat and more about the device you’re going to fill. There’s a carb button, making the included cap just for travel. Instead of trapping in the smoke with a cap, the heat source in the chamber draws the concentrate down into the center, which means no more swabbing between hits. dabx.com @dabxusa

THE FLOWER MILL

The Flower Mill is not a grinder. Rather, it achieves its function by utilizing an entirely different mechanism – milling. By definition, to grind is to reduce something to small particles by crushing it. On the other hand, to mill is to cut or shape into pieces. The bottom line is this: Your flower is going to be in much exponentially better condition after being milled versus being ground. After a thorough test run and side-by-side comparison, there is no doubt the grinders are going on the shelf and the mill will stay … ahem … in rotation. flowermillusa.com @flowermillusa

COURTESY
REVIEWS by LEAF NATION STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS | PHOTOS by DANIEL BERMAN @BERMANPHOTOS
ISPIRE

THE PEAK OF SUCCESS

Puffco founder & CEO Roger Volodarsky

It’s not hard to see why he’s earned such a moniker. Jobs started Apple in his parents’ garage, while Volodarsky started Puffco in his mother’s basement. Like Jobs, he frequently dresses in basic black attire. But the most significant similarity between the two tech moguls is undoubtedly the sleek style of their creations and how profoundly they impact the lives of their users. It’s fair to say that what the iPhone did for mobile phones, the Puffco Peak has done for Cannabis consumption.

In front of our lens, Roger appears guarded, even stiff … but off camera, his stoic demeanor softens to reveal the passion and generosity of spirit that his friends know all too well.

TROUBLED YOUTH

The son of Ukrainian Jews who immigrated to Brooklyn in the 1980s, Volodarsky's early life was difficult – both economically and emotionally.

“I definitely did not have a happy childhood,” he confesses. “I felt like an outsider because I grew up on the poorer side of Coney Island, and all of my parents' friends had money. And my parents ended up getting divorced, so I didn’t get enough emotional support. But I'm grateful for my experi ence because it pushed me to get what I desire in life and led me here.”

Like many troubled teens, he found escape and comfort in Cannabis. At the age of 13, after an attempt to smoke a joint during a field trip proved unsuccessful, his buddy got him high for the first time.

“I took a hit, and I remember feeling this warmth in my fingertips, toes and head, and it started radiating in towards the center,” Volodarsky recalls. “I kind of melted off the couch – like in those anti-drug commercials – and all that loneliness of being the odd kid out, of not having enough resources to keep up with everyone else … all that just went away. I remember thinking, ‘this is incredi ble—I want to do this forever!’”

To be clear, he doesn’t endorse minors getting high as a matter of practice. “I’m definitely not recommending that anybody under the legal age consume Cannabis,” he states. “But at 13 years old, life was very confusing and traumatic for me, and engaging with the plant gave me an instant sense of relief.”

Unfortunately, like many immigrants from the “Old World,” Roger’s parents were extremely anti-drug and overreacted when they learned of his newfound fondness for marijuana. Within a year or two, he grew estranged from much of his family and friends.

“This was heavy in the ‘War on Drugs’ era, the DARE era of propaganda being shot at everyone. That propaganda worked very well on my parents

and many people around me," Volo darsky explains. “I kind of became this lost soul in the eyes of many – a drug addict.”

A FATEFUL MILESTONE

In his young adult hood, Volodarsky pursued a “normal life” – working several different jobs, none of which provided the sense of fulfillment he was craving.

“I was a serial entrepreneur,” he explains. “I was in the mortgage space, I've worked for a translation service, I've worked as a systems administrator … I've done a bunch of different things, but I never worked on something that I was really passionate about.”

Then in 2012, at the age of 30, he reached a turning point.

"When you're a kid, you have all these ideas of what you're going to be when you're 30. But almost everyone I know ended up not being what they thought they would be. The world millennials were promised – ‘If you work really hard, you’ll get these things’ – that wasn't happening for our generation. And so I hit this really frustrating point, and I was using Can nabis to cope.”

It was at this point that a friend turned him on to the enticing new world of wax (as BHO was called at the time) and vape pens.

"I was completely liberated,” Volodarsky says. “I was able to walk around the city and consume, and I felt truly invisible. I became obsessed with it.”

Noticing his passion for the new “dab pen” phe nomenon – and knowing he despised his systems administrator job – Volodarsky’s friend encouraged him to try getting into the vape industry.

“I had to make a decision: either work a job that I hate to provide me with the lifestyle I want, or

IT’S A MONDAY MORNING IN DOWNTOWN L.A., and the offices of Puffco are unusually quiet. Of the company’s nearly 130 employees, barely a dozen are here … among them, the company’s Founder and CEO, Roger Volodarsky – aka the Steve Jobs of Cannabis.
OCT. 2022 34 leafmagazines.com THE TECH ISSUE

pursue what I love. And I decided, 'you know what? Fuck it – why don't I start doing this?’"

Volodarsky began researching wax pens online and learning everything he could about them –mainly, how they were made and who was selling them. He made recon trips to smoke shops in Atlan tic City and Haight Ashbury to see what vapes were available and quickly realized that none of them were very good.

“All the wax vapes at the time were just repurpos ing e-cigarette technology,” he explains. “They were really shitty products. And so, not knowing where to begin, my only goal was just, 'I want to make something better than this.’”

THE BIRTH OF PUFFCO

After toying around with various ideas, he de cided on the name “Puffco,” purchased the URL in January of 2013, and incorporated in March. And just like that, he was in the vape business.

“Puffco was my first investment in myself,” says Volodarsky. “I thought, if it leads nowhere, that's okay – because I'll enjoy every second that I work on this."

After tinkering with various components and pro totypes, the company released its first product, the Puffco Clas sic, in January 2014. Though he found it preferable to other pens on the market, Volodarsky was not satisfied. So after selling off the first batch, he went back to the drawing board with the goal of accomplish ing three key improvements: a higher capacity atomizer, variable temperature control, and removal of glues and fibers from the air path. Those three pillars inspired his next iteration, the Puffco Pro. By replacing the fibers typically used to soak up the oil with porous ceramic, the Pro significantly improved the flavor and healthiness of vaping concentrates.

HIGH TIMES / LOW TIMES

The Pro was released in October 2014 … just as High Times was about to conduct its annual vape pen review. Learning of this, Roger showed up at their offices at the last minute with a box of sam ples. Though Puffco was unknown at the time, the Pro ended up taking first place for Best Vapor Pen. That award changed everything for Puffco – both for better and for worse.

“After the review was a very bittersweet period,” Volodarsky recalls. “That threw us into the spotlight and got us a ton of fans and revenue coming in, but it also forced us to make much more product than we were before.”

Unfortunately, consumers weren’t the only ones who took notice of their improved design; within a few months after the review was published, copycat devices began appearing on the market.

“I took it very personally. I had obsessed over this vape pen for two years, and now this thing that I'd worked so hard on – the greatest thing I might ever do – was being bastardized by shittier brands. I didn't know what to do – I felt completely defeated.”

To make matters worse, in addition to having their intellectual property poached, Puffco’s supply chain unex pectedly collapsed at the end of 2014.

Volodarsky had to act quickly, or everything he'd been working towards might be lost. In early 2015, he and his head of operations headed to Chi na, where they spent over a month establishing new relationships and exhausted most of the revenue they'd earned rebuilding their supply chain.

Once they had partnerships in place with new manufacturers, they went straight into production on their next models: the Puffco Plus (the first truly coil-less vape pen on the market) and the Puffco Pro 2, both of which sold exceptionally well. But still, Roger was unsatisfied.

“We came out with the Pro 2, and I hated it," he grumbles. “It got decent reviews, and made the company millions of dollars … but I was making products for the sake of the sale, not trying to innovate. And that threw me into one of the big gest depressions of my life.”

So in 2016, when Puffco’s head engineer Avi asked him what he wanted to work on next, Roger laid out his vision for their most ambi tious project yet.

PEAK PERFORMANCE

“I wanted to do something totally new,” he explains. “I was like, I want to make a device that makes dabbing flawless and gives you the perfect dab every time.”

Volodarsky had a checklist of criteria he wanted this new device to meet: It should let you know when the dab is ready. To avoid the associated stigma, there couldn’t be any torching involved. It should be shaped like a beer bottle and fit into a cup holder. And it should have a removable glass attachment so that artists could make custom pieces for it.

“One of the biggest parts of the hash and dab scene is glass,” explains Volodarsky. “We're not here to compete with glass artists – we're here to work with them. We want them to see us as a platform to express their creativity.”

After months of development, Roger, Ari and their team had invented the first fully-electronic handheld “smart rig,” the Puffco Peak – a groundbreaking dab device featuring four heat settings, an LED light band, haptic feedback and automatic temperature calibration. Volodarsky had so much confidence in the Peak that just as it was set to launch in late 2017, he made the risky decision to move the entire company to Los Angeles.

“We put everything on the line,” Volodarsky ad mits. “When we moved [to L.A.], we had one payroll period and two months of rent left in our bank ac count. We just knew that once people saw the Peak, everybody was going to want it.”

His gamble paid off: The Peak became an instant sensation, revolutionizing concentrate consumption and generating millions in sales.

But like many innovations, it still had bugs that needed working out. Complaints of defective devic es and atomizer connectivity issues became com mon—but Puffco addressed these problems through tech support, and repairing and replacing parts.

Their redesigned Peak Pro, released two years lat er, fixed its predecessor's shortcomings while adding several new features, including multicolor lighting options, real-time temperature controls, usage statis tics and more – all controllable via their new smart phone app. This new “flagship device” also offered a slew of new attachments and accessories.

RECENT INNOVATIONS

After the enormous success of the Peak Pro, Puffco began branching out with two new products designed for flower: a water bottle bong called the Budsy in 2021, followed by a coffee cup bong called the Cupsy in 2022. While both are fun and functional devices, it was their next innovation –the Proxy – that would once again redefine the dab game.

What makes Proxy unique is that the atomizer chamber is a separate, freestanding device – inde pendent of any paraphernalia. Though sold with the outer casing of a classic pipe, this modular vaporiz er can be inserted into any kind of smoking appa ratus with an appropriately sized hole to house it –making it a perfect vehicle for glass artists’ creativity.

“We’re big fans of the glass scene,” says Volo darsky. “Hash and glass have grown together over the past decade, and we want to honor that space by continuing to invest in it.”

FAMILY & FULFILLMENT

Roger Volodarsky’s road to riches has undoubted ly been a rough one. Once ostracized by his family for his love of Cannabis, he’s since forged himself a new family at Puffco.

“Chelsea, my first employee who I’ve been a mentor to … Kevin, who was my friend before he joined the company, and who’s always good for a laugh … Avi, our chief technology officer … I'm very lucky to have some of the people that most enrich my life here with me in this business,” Volodarsky beams. “We all feel like our work is meaningful because we're working on things that make our own lives better every day. To live every day doing what you love and having people love you for it … I can't imagine anything better than this."

STORY by BOBBY BLACK @BOBBYBLACK420/LEAF NATION | PHOTOS by JUSTIN STEWART @JUSTNLSTEWART

"I WAS LIKE, 'I WANT TO MAKE A DEVICE THAT MAKES DABBING FLAWLESS AND GIVES YOU THE PERFECT DAB EVERY TIME.' "
COURTESY PUFFCO Special edition versions of the company’s runaway hit, the Puffco Peak.

Building a

JAIR VELLEMAN

DUTCH LIGHTING INNOVATIONS

SITTING AT THE LONG DINING TABLE in his flat overlooking the canals of his hometown of Amsterdam, Jair Velleman leans in and smiles through his thick beard, exuding equal parts intensity and joviality. “Let me ask you something,” he says. “Do you like war? I love war.” It was my first conversation with Velleman, and it was a moment that speaks volumes about this magnanimous, mercurial mammoth of a man. He wasn’t talking about bombs, armies and military actions.

He was talking about the business battleground. That moment kept replaying in my head during subsequent conversations over the months following that first meeting. Velleman and his former company, Gavita, revolutionized the grow light industry before he sold it for a “never have to work again” sum more than half a decade ago. Now, like a retired general returning to the war room, he’s coming back to the world that he helped build – this time at the helm of his new lighting company, Dutch Lighting Innovations.

36 leafmagazines.com THE tech ISSUE
ocT. 2022

Better

SPROUTING

Growing up in a progressive Amsterdam family, Velleman was introduced to Cannabis at an early age. At around 12 years old, he went to a nature camp that he says was “kind of a hippie thing” – where he ended up having his first experience with the plant.

“Somebody was smoking joints in a tent, and we hotboxed the tent,” he said. “I ended up laughing for hours from a very stupid joke. Slowly, through the years, I started smoking more. I’m a very hyperactive guy, so it kind of put me more on a level where I could communicate with people around me, and I kind of enjoyed that.”

When he was 16, he spent his days hang ing at a local coffee shop called Picasso.

“The owner said, ‘Dude, do you have a basement?’ I said, ‘I live with my mother, but yes, we have a big basement,’” Velleman recalled. “Pretty much I talked my mother into starting a grow … We had four 1000-watt lights, and a sea of green of 300 plants. That was my first grow. And after that, I just kept growing.”

SWITCHED ON

After a number of years cultivating, a lightbulb moment hit Velleman. He decided to form a company to manufac ture double-ended HPS lights and market them to the burgeoning indoor and greenhouse cultivation market in the U.S.

I was just really excited - because I used to be a Cannabis grower - to bring this crazy, new technolo gy to Cannabis growers,” he said. “I love ‘The Blues Brothers.’ It’s a beautiful movie. I always use the quote, ‘I am on a mission from God.’ And my mission was to make sure that growers go from one-and-ahalf pounds per light, to three pounds per light, or four pounds per light. Because that was what Gavita did. We gave people three pounds per light. That was a big thing in the beginning.”

Velleman sold Gavita more than five years ago and spent the ensuing time building a family, garnering awards for his advocacy and focusing on his passions – such as collecting items for his World of Cannabis Museum. But now he’s on the path to build upon

his prior successes and experience, creating what he hopes will be the world’s leading quality manufacturer of Cannabis grow light technology.

HERO’S QUEST

When he talks about the new endeavor, Velleman can hardly contain his excitement.

“The last time, we ended up with the biggest horticultural lighting company in the world before we sold, so from where I stand, that’s about the top of the pinnacle,” he said. “I kind of enjoy going back to the underdog posi tion. Then I have to fight the big guys, instead of being the big guys, and everybody attacking you.”

With DLI, Velleman wants to create the best possible lights, and manufac ture them 100% at his facility in Hol land. It’s all about total quality control.

“I’m a grower by heart,” he said. “I love growers. And I want to get the best product possible to them. I did it with Gavita, and we’re now gon na do it with DLI, with a no-bullshit approach. I don’t care if my prod uct is slightly more expensive than everybody else’s. That might be true. I’m not aiming to be the cheapest on the market. You either have to be the cheapest or the best. So we made the decision to be the best.”

At the core of his philosophy is the goal of making every light sold with the DLI label at the same level of quality as what industry manufacturers call a “hero light.”

“It’s one light that’s built to top specifications,” he said. “That’s the one that you will test in the labo ratory, and it’s the one you will take the specs from, that you will put on your flyers and on your website. Nobody’s checking what comes afterward. The trick of putting a good product out to market is that every light you build needs to be a hero light.”

As with everything else he’s been involved in, he plans to be hands-on at DLI. It’s the only way to en sure the company will match his intentions.

“I’m the tip of the spear,” he said. “I’m the warlord. I go out. A lot of CEOs sit behind their desks. Owners

of companies sit behind their desks. I don’t sit behind my desk. I will travel, come out, meet my customers. And because I meet my customers and actually talk with them, I understand what their wishes are and what they actually want – and we can use that for creating new products for horticulture and for Canna bis growing.”

BRIGHT FUTURE

DLI manufactures LED and more traditional HPS lighting, and is currently working on spectrum tests and other research to try to push plants to their limits. Velleman and his team will be collaborating with Wageningen University & Research, a university in Holland, to gather and interpret data, and develop new technology.

“LED is where the future is at right now,” he said. “I think the biggest thing right now with LED is going to be developing a more wide-based spectrum that can actually enhance things like terpenes – because the future is going to be in terpenes. You don’t buy good wine because it’s one percent more alcohol than the other wine next to it – you pay $100 for a bottle of wine not on the alcohol percentage, but on the god damn terpenes. The future is not going to be THC, it’s going to be terpenes.”

One of the product lines Velleman is most excited about isn’t LED, rather, it’s the non-LED UV lighting DLI has developed for use in concert with a wide-spectrum LED setup. He plans to unveil it with a DLI launch in November at MJBizCon in Las Vegas.

“The plant protects itself against UV by doing certain things, like making trichomes,” Velleman said. “That’s what we want. We want those trichomes and those terpenes. The plant reacts to UV, and that plant reac tion is exactly what we want. That will create a better product that’s better tasting.”

As much as Velleman is thrilled about the tech, that’s not the main thing that’s drawn him back to the battlefield.

“I love the Cannabis community,” he said. “That’s why I’m coming back. I could sit on a tropical island and sip cocktails until the day I die, and I don’t want to do that. My best friends are in this community, and my best friends are all over the world. The moment I stop working, I don’t see my friends anymore. So I have no choice. … I love hanging out with all those amazing people that I will tell my grandchildren about.”

“I’m a grower by heart,” said Velleman. “I love growers. And I want to get the best product possible to them.”
DUTCHLIGHTINGINNOVATIONS.COM @DUTCH_LIGHTING_INNOVATIONS
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High APPtitude

WEEDMAPS

Seen by some as the green standard for finding and buying Cannabis in your surrounding area, Weedmaps has been available in app form for years. Boasting a user-friendly interface, this an app for finding dispensaries, scoring discounts and getting crucial news on the industry.

LEAFLY

Need to know more about the strain you’re thinking about buying? Download the Leafly app and get a crash-course on your future purchase in no time. Also features tools to find dispensaries, and robust editorial and educational content.

EAZE

You’ve seen the billboards, now get the app! A major player in the California Cannabis scene, Eaze’s app leaves customers just a few clicks away from getting their desired goodies delivered to their door. They call them the “Uber of Weed” for a reason, folks.

GLASSPASS

You won’t find flower for sale at GlassPass. Instead, discover a community of glassheads looking to buy and sell amazing pieces of art that may also serve a secondary purpose. Crypto integrated, auction powered and featuring a community of 25,000+, GlassPass is digital Cannabis culture done right.

HIGHTHERE

there was a point not so long ago when the sug gestion of a device ca pable of putting 10,000 albums in your pocket would have been ridiculed as patently absurd. But seemingly overnight, the reign of CDs came crashing to a halt as iPods ushered in a new era of music consumption. Is it possible such a seismic shift could be heading for the Cannabis industry as well?

Colleen King, VP of Growth at the Oakland startup Ciclo, believes such a future is rapidly crashing into the present.

Describing Ciclo as a “supply chain technology company that’s also plant touching,” the idea behind the Listo app is to connect craft and legacy cultivators through a securely-vetted virtual interface that conjures trade as it used to take place way back when.

Tapped for her past experience in the legacy market and expertise with direct trade models in the coffee industry, King shares that her hope was to return an element of dialogue and community to the grower/end-buyer relationship.

“It's kind of old school,” King says of Listo, explaining that the app is geared towards streamlining the ability of smaller cultivators to communicate, source and nego tiate with high-value buyers. “You can bid on something and talk to each other, but then everything moves to a message thread – which is the way a lot of procurement works these days.”

Valid proof of a Metrc account is required to access most of Listo’s key features, though non-industry users are able to view a limited selection of the app’s offerings. If you want to see price trends, which strains are being planted, and who might be looking to buy, however, you’ll need to supply your Metrc (Califiornia’s official Cannabis regulatory system provider) credentials.

Recently approved by Apple’s App Store, King shared that a long dialogue preceded Ciclo’s choice to finally apply in August.

“Typically, it takes 24-48 hours for a non-Cannabis app. I've been talking with them, probably, on and off for eight months – and that was all prior to submission.”

Expected to be available by Santa Rosa’s Hall of Flowers trade show on Oct. 5-6, the inquiries from App Store representatives have actually given King renewed reason for optimism when it comes to the gradual mainstreaming of Cannabis-related apps.

“It seems like, from what we've gone through, they prefer to have the traceability of a license, which allows you to verify all of the license holders,” King observed. “It seems like the App Store is increasingly opening up to the idea. They have more sophisticated questions, so their knowledge base on the topic is growing. I'm really hopeful – as I think this is a really important place where technology and Cannabis can overlap.”

Indeed, Listo will be but the latest entry in a field already rich with Cannabis-related apps now available from Apple’s App Store and Google Play. To spare your thumbs, here’s a current crop report on what’s out there, just waiting to be downloaded. ciclo.tech @ciclo_solutions

Tired of social media networks that censor Cannabis talk? Get the High There app to join a social network that aims to be a weed-friendly answer to Facebook and Instagram. Populated with newbies and experts alike, if you fancy yourself a fan of the green stuff, it’s time to say hi to High There.

THEWEEDTUBE

Building on a theme, YouTube is another massively popular platform that doesn’t take too kindly to Cannabis content. When two for mer YouTubers got the boot for talking about weed, they decided to start TheWeedTube. Grab the app and it will quickly become abundantly clear that there’s an endless array of fascinating stuff worth watching on the topic.

GROWING

BUDLABS

Looking for an app that can help you make the most of a hydroponic grow? BudLabs is packed with helpful information and neat tools like a built-in nutrient calculator to help orga nize every facet of the growing process. We’re talking feeding schedules, expert advice, and diagrams and visual aids aplenty.

RELAXING

WIZ KHALIFA’S WEED FARM

Not every app has to be about business. If you want to blow off some steam while cultivating a Cannabis empire, put your green thumb to the test with Wiz Khalifa’s Weed Farm. Doubling as an educational tool for those look ing to learn more about home grows, the gameplay is akin to Stardew Valley, but for weed. And don’t forget to earn bragging rights by connecting with friends on Facebook.

420TV What if Netflix only featured movies and television programs about Cannabis? That’s the concept of 420TV, a platform that’s strictly focused on weed but still manages to boast a seriously massive library of content. Fully free to download and enjoy, 420TV features 4K resolution and is always adding more stuff to enjoy. [Not available on Google Play]

38 Colleen King of Ciclo chats about Listo and the potential for a bright future at the intersection of Cannabis and tech.
STORY by ZACK RUSKIN for LEAF NATIONocT. 2022 leafmagazines.com
Must-Have Weed Apps Have Officially Arrived SHOPPING NETWORKING
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concentrate of the month

“The high is very heady and only slightly foggy. ”

TEST RESULTS

78.83% Total Cannabinoids 13.88% Total Terps 9.3 myrcene 1.68 pinene .61 limonene .55 ocimene .52 caryophyllene .36 linalool

40

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SOUTH WEST STOMPER

SOUTH WEST STOMPER

CRESCO CRESCOLABS.COM @OG_CRESCO_MARYLAND WILLIE’S WONDER LIVE BUDDER

WONDER LIVE BUDDER

Myrcene lovers, prepare to adore the Cresco South West Stomper x Willie’s Wonder live budder. Cresco has built a reputation for creating some very tasty live resin products and it is always a treat to try any of their dabs, but this South West Stomper x Willie’s Wonder is truly one of their best. It packs a total terpene content of 13.88% with a monumental 9.3% being myrcene.

TO SAY this is a heavy dab is an understatement, as it promises to absolutely flood your body with soothing medicinal relief. Myrcene is one of the most helpful terpenes for fighting pain, and I can personally attest to my first hit completely loosening all of my sore joints from working in the garden.

The consistency of the dab is easy to work with and balances perfectly to create a smooth and delicious texture. As we know, just because this is medicine, doesn’t mean it has to taste bad – and the Cresco South West Stomper x Willie’s Wonder live budder is a wonderful example of this with its amalgamation of hazy and fruity profiles. There is also a dose of fuel notes to underscore the cacophony of tropical essences. Hands down, this is a delightful product – both from an epicurean and medicinal standpoint.

The high is very heady and only slightly foggy. In fact, it is way less foggy than I anticipated given how much of a myrcene bomb is in this flower. I attribute this to the healthy dose of pinene, which is known to clear the stoniness of a high to allow the brain to stay better focused. I try to seek out flower that can seriously medicate my pain, but also keep my mind free to go about my day. Cresco has really stepped up to this challenge, and I highly suggest exploring what this wallop of myrcene with a touch of pinene does for you.

REVIEW by TAYLOR MARTIN for MARYLAND LEAF | PHOTO by GREG MALCOLM @MARYLAND.CONNOISSEUR
oct. 2022
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Hemp & Humanity

When we think about Cannabis technologies, we typically picture extraction machines or smoking devices … but as the late, great Jack Herer taught us in his classic compendium “The Emperor Wears No Clothes,” Cannabis’ most significant technological impact on the world may have little to do with its psychoactive flowers; rather, it’s been the plant’s stalks – better known as hemp – that have helped drive mankind’s progress for millennia.

THE ANCIENT WORLD

It’s hard to overestimate how essential hemp has been to human civilization. Hemp is believed to be one of the earliest plants ever cultivated and the first whose fibers were used to make cloth. Some of the oldest archaeological relics of human history include a remnant of hemp fabric from ancient Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq/Turkey/Iran) dating back to 8,000 BCE, and Yangshao amphorae (pottery jugs) with hemp cord imprinted onto them unearthed in Taiwan from between 4,000-6,000 BCE.

As early as the Stone Age, the Chinese started spinning yarn and weaving cloth from hemp as an alternative to silk. Until the introduction of cotton around the 10-11th century CE, hemp was the dominant fabric used in Chinese society. (In fact, before the 20th century, historians estimate that around 80% of all clothing in the world was made from hemp.)

fiber and mulberry tree bark into a pulp, mixing it with water, draining it, placing it into a flat mold and drying it. It’s believed that the first hemp paper mills arose in China and parts of the Middle East as early as the 8th century BCE. The oldest known documents ever written on paper – Buddhist texts dating to the second and third centuries BCE – used this Chinese hemp paper.

EUROPE & THE AGE OF EXPLORATION

Yangshao amphora with hemp cord markings.

Ancient Chinese texts spoke of hemp textiles being used for rope, fishing nets, burial cloths, bowstrings, hats, shoes and robes – all corroborated by archeological evidence. The Shu Ching (one of the earliest known books in human history) contains numerous references to hemp – reporting that it was grown around castles in Shantung Province, was often gifted to peasants by royalty and was used to make military attire and weaponry. And the Er Ya – the earliest Chinese dictionary, written between 221 BCE and 24 CE – describes hemp fiber as “strong and soft, able to be spun into cloth” and states that its seeds and oil were a source of food.

In addition to rope and fabric, the Chinese also used hemp to create one of their most impactful inventions: paper. The earliest paper was made by crushing hemp

In the centuries that followed, hemp spread throughout various cultures in Asia and the Middle East – everyone from the Scythians and the Egyptians (who used hemp rope during construction of the Pyramids) to the peoples of India, Mongolia and Russia. And thanks to the Silk Road, hemp also found its way to the Mediterranean in around 1200 BCE. From there, it was traded and utilized by nearly every civilization in Europe – from the Romans, Greeks and Vikings during the Iron Age, and Germany, Denmark and Britain during the Middle Ages. (In 16th century England, hemp was so essential that King Henry VIII decreed that all landowners were required to grow at least a quarter acre of it.)

The crop became especially crucial during the age of exploration and colonization, when the kingdoms of Europe began sending out ships in search of new lands and trade routes. Canvas (whose name is derived from the word Cannabis) was the preferred material among sailors and shipbuilders since it was three times stronger than cotton, resistant to decay, and could be easily grown in whatever locale a ship might end up in. As a result, hemp was used for the ropes, sails and rigging on most maritime vessels – including those of Christopher Columbus and the Mayflower.

PHGCOM “Hemp harvesting on Rhine bank” by Jean-Baptiste Lallemand (1860). Ancient chinese text referring to hemp.
leafmagazines.com OCT. 2022 44 cannthropology
PRESENTS
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CANNABIS IN THE COLONIES

English settlers first brought hemp to Jamestown in 1606, then to Plymouth in 1620. In 1619, Virginia’s legislature (the House of Burgesses) passed a law requiring all farmers in the colony to grow it. By the mid-1700s, farmers in all of the Colonies were legally obliged to grow it – including founding fathers George Washington and Thomas Jefferson (who later wrote the first drafts of the Declaration of Independence on hemp paper). In the decades leading up to the Revolutionary War, America produced vast amounts of hemp – much of which was grown in Kentucky, and most of which was shipped back to England. It became such an economic staple in the Colonies that it was actually considered legal tender and could even be used to pay one’s taxes.

In the century that followed, hemp continued to play a vital role in America’s development. One of the nation’s first paper mills, founded by Benjamin Franklin, produced hemp paper. The first warship the U.S. Navy ever built – the USS Constitution, aka “Old Ironsides” – used nearly 60 tons of hemp for its ropes, linings and sails. The tops of all the covered wagons carrying settlers out west during the 19th century were made of hemp canvas, and President Abraham Lincoln used hemp oil to fuel the lamps in his home.

INDUSTRY INNOVATIONS

When steamships began replacing sailing vessels after the Civil War, the demand for hemp dwindled somewhat … nevertheless, the industry continued to thrive thanks to technological innovations in harvesting and processing the plant.

In 1830, inventor Robert McCormick patented a hemp fiber-processing device he called a “hemp-break” (his descendants – through their company, International Harvester – later introduced other harvesting tools to aid hemp farmers). Next, in 1919, G.W. Schlichten was granted a patent for a machine called a decorticator that streamlined the separation of hemp fibers. And from 1915-1920, hemp grower Matt Rens built a small empire of steam-powered mills that processed thousands of acres of hemp and earned him the title “America’s Hemp King.”

Then, in 1941, automobile mogul Henry Ford unveiled an experimental new car he’d developed that was built almost entirely out of hemp bioplastic and even ran on hemp biomass fuel. Ford considered it the first step in fulfilling his dream to “grow automobiles from soil,” as reported in the December 1941 issue of Popular Mechanics –the same magazine who, three years earlier, had declared hemp the “new billion-dollar crop.” Unfortunately, both that prediction and Ford’s dream would soon go down the proverbial drain.

This brings us to the second factor: In 1937, prohibitionist Harry J. Anslinger finally succeeded in convincing Congress to pass the Marihuana Tax Act – imposing exorbitant taxes and bureaucratic burdens on anyone seeking to “import, manufacture, produce, compound, sell, deal in, dispense, distribute, prescribe, administer, or give away” Cannabis, effectively crippling the hemp industry.

HEMP FOR VICTORY

Of course, one glaring exception to the decline in hemp production is World War II. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, imports of desperately needed hemp and jute from Eastern Asia were cut off. In response, the U.S. Government halted enforcement of the MTA and encouraged farmers to grow as much hemp as possible – even producing a propaganda film entitled “Hemp for Victory” that extolled the historical benefits of hemp, but conveniently failed to mention its connection to the “evil weed.”

From 1942-1945, around 400,000 acres of hemp were grown in the U.S. But predictably, as soon as the war ended, the authorities went right back to enforcing the Act and even tried to erase “Hemp for Victory” from history. Were it not for Herer’s investigative efforts in the 1980s, the film might have been forgotten forever.

RECENT REVIVAL

DEATH & TAXES

Despite its promising future, the hemp industry was all but dead by the mid-20th century, thanks primarily to two factors. Firstly, new European looms and gins made cotton a more affordable fabric than hemp for clothing. The same was true for paper – with production costs of using wood pulp becoming significantly lower than for hemp. (Until 1883, over 80% of all the world’s paper had been made from hemp). Hemp also faced competition from newly invented synthetic fibers like polyester, nylon and acrylic, which the petroleum industry spent significant sums lobbying for. Beyond that, though, the theories about nefarious plots to destroy the hemp industry by tycoons like the DuPonts, Andrew Mellon, and William Randolph Hearst suggested in Herer’s book have never been substantiated.

Hemp remained “shadow-banned” until 1970 when the Controlled Substances Act outlawed it outright – making no distinction in the law between marijuana and hemp. The industry remained ostensibly dead until the late 1990s when a handful of activist companies across North America attempted to revive it using imported hemp. Canada eventually lifted its hemp growing ban in 1998, but it took the U.S. another two decades to follow suit – finally passing the Farm Bill that removed hemp from the CSA in 2018. Today, the American hemp industry is making a comeback – and it’s a damn good thing, too: In light of the climate crisis, the need for renewable energy sources and alternatives to deforestation are reminding us how crucial this miraculous plant is to our survival on this planet. After all, as Jack himself once famously prophesied, “Hemp will be the future of all mankind, or there won’t be a future.”

For our podcast & more Cannabis history content visit worldofcannabis.museum/cannthropology.

PHOTO by SHUTTERSTOCK.COM A “hemp for victory” propganada poster. First draft of the Declaration of Independence on hemp paper. Henry Ford’s hemp eco-car. Right: Earliest depiction of the USS Constitution (aka “Old Ironsides”) by Michele Felice Corné (1803). The U.S. Army protects the hemp seed supply in Kentucky during WWII (1942). COURTESY OF THE NAVY ART COLLECTION COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL AGRICULTURE LIBRARY
@CANNTHROPOLOGY for LEAF NATION| MAIN

THE UNION OF MARRIAGE is a sanctimonious institution that has effectively been the glue binding our species for millen nia. Without that legal commitment – which has basically stood as a contract between two people to agree to love each other ‘til death do them part – we’d be an 8-billion-person planet … full of nothing but singles ready to mingle.

That’s a scary thought.

We all know that uninterrupted love to the very end is fairly unrealistic – but that’s why you’ve gotta lock that “right one” down before someone else swoops in and changes their mind. And it shows the old man in the golden throne – chillin’ on Cloud 19 with a Mai Tai in one hand and a heavenly joint in the other – that you’re a team player who abides by the scriptures.

You want to make it past the pearly gates to Cloud 69, right?

Because matrimony is a religious indoctrination – not entirely based upon love, but in many ways necessary for the order that allows for species to proliferate – and people respond well to being given direction and told where to conform. And even though every animal in the kingdom requires a mate of the opposite gender to make a baby, we are the only ones who feel the vital necessity to ink it onto paper.

Even if you’re an asshole like me (who believes that this contract is a formality initiated by the church to keep us donating our tithes while raising future tithers), there is no escaping the fact that each and every one of us is beholden to convenience.

It’s why we sign with blood when committing to our internet provider – because this is our conduit to most of the world’s information. Including websites that contain salacious acts of naughtiness.

Which could keep you married. Or not.

46 LEAFMAGAZINES.COM OCt. 2022 stoney baloney FOLLOW @RICKERDJ // GET THE AUDIO VERSION & EVERY EPISODE AT LEAFMAGAZINES.COM
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