If you don’t know who Ed Rosenthal is you probably haven’t been around cannabis very long, as he is a legend. He has authored or edited a dozen books on cannabis cultivation and policy, which have sold over two million copies. Ed also built and managed the first cooperative cannabis growers network through his monthly column in High Times magazine. For the first time, pot farmers from around the globe could share their knowledge. Now, cannabis seems to be overtaking the globe. Rosenthal, however, sees this as just the beginning. The famous cannabis advocate and medical grower was excited to tell us about his newest projects.

Stoner Magazine (SM): What have you been working on lately, Ed?

Ed: I’m finishing up a book called Marijuana Harvest that I have been working on. I think it will be of great benefit to growers. It is the first serious book about harvesting. It deals with when to pick, how to pick, how to dry, cure, and store based on science rather than myth. I have done a lot of experimentation and developed new methods of harvesting especially for the small commercial grower that is growing 48 to 96 large plants. It will cut down their harvest time, the time they spend picking, by ½ to ¾. This book will save growers thousands of dollars, and an incredible amount of labor and heartache.

Possible Fall 2017 release. Projected price between $25 and $30.

SM: What is Green Aid?

Ed: It is a legal defense fund I am involved with. We have worked on quite a variety of cases. We have helped a number of families relocate to medical friendly states in order to avoid being prosecuted for relieving their child’s seizures with cannabis.

About ten years ago, we were also able to obtain hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of free billboard space. Rather than use it for our own purposes, we donated it to an organization that was skilled in doing billboards for marijuana. We called them up and asked how would you like hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of free billboard space and all you have to do is the artwork?

They said, “OK what’s the catch? What do you want for it?”

We said, “What we want is marijuana legalized!”

Now we are working on a campaign in Hawaii where medical marijuana patients who are legally entitled to grow, are having their rent jacked up or being illegally evicted.

At Green Aid the only paid person is the bookkeeper. It is otherwise all volunteer. We are working behind the scenes doing things that positively affect the paradigm, not looking for publicity for ourselves. It is a 501(c)(3) organization so we can give you a tax deduction for your support!

More information on Green Aid click here.

SM: With 29 states recognizing the medicinal benefits and 9 states that are embracing full legalization, how long do you think it will be before we see national legalization?

Ed: There are going to be hold out states but I think people are tired of the War on Drugs. They have other wars to fight!

As much as the Federal Government would like to make a case about marijuana and crime, the statistics just aren’t there to back that up. Everything changed with Colorado. Crime has gone down. There has been a reduction of incidents in general. There was a real concern, that crime would go up with all these marijuana addicts roaming the streets. They are roaming the streets, yes, but they are looking for the nearest pizzeria!

SM: Cannabis is trending upward right now. Where do you see all this going?

Ed: I think there is going to be a lot of branding, and the way that it is distributed is going to change to a great extent. There will be everything from international conglomerates to over-the-fence trading between neighbors. If you look in Marijuana Grower’s Handbook, I talk about the tomato market and I think that is exactly how it is going to be. People love growing tomatoes. Some don’t grow anything else! I will tell you why people like to grow tomatoes more than anything else, and this applies to pot.

Do you know who grows the majority of the tomatoes in the US?

Home growers, and I’ll tell you why. In order to get a tomato to the customer without spoiling, the tomato has to be picked green. It ripens along the way. Unlike super sweet corn or melon that will ripen after you pick it, once you pick the tomato it stops producing sugars so even if it’s the best organic tomato you are not getting the full sugar content. That’s why people treasure homegrown tomatoes.

Now, think about grass.

Do you know the person who, without a doubt, grows the best marijuana in the world?

Whichever grower you are talking to at the time! There is nothing like smoking your own and with pesticides and everything, people want to know what they get. To answer your question, I think the biggest thing is how much marijuana will become a part of gardening life in the US.

SM: Is there anything else you would like to share, Ed?

Ed: I have evolved with pot. I like to say it doesn’t change what you think, it changes the way you think it. People look at cannabis anthropomorphically. Ever meet a grower who names their plants? Like Julie or something like that?

Once cannabis and humans met, they had this symbiotic relationship where they have helped each other. Is there something in the genetics that made them symbiotic to each other?

Most perennials and annuals flower throughout the growing season but marijuana has different stages of life and that’s like humans! Cannabis is dimorphic. It is the only annual I know of that has separate male and female plants. The plants we treasure are female. In art, the female body has more beautiful form.

So with humans and marijuana, the female is the prized form but with most other species, the male is the more splendid animal, especially with birds and reptiles. We know the nurture part of it but do we know the nature part of it? There are a lot of anthropomorphic things about cannabis and that is another reason humans love them so much. Cannabis has been spread all over by humans. Humans have used it and it has helped humans spread all over! Was this bound to happen?  

Hope you were able to make it out to Hempfest in Portland, OR to get a book and June’s Grow Issue signed by Ed!

TO VISIT ED’S YOUTUBE CHANNEL CLICK HERE

TO CHECK OUT ED’S BOOKS CLICK HERE

Words by Brother Green & Crystal Brousseau