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Vandals destroy Templeton hemp crop

September 13, 2019

By Karen Velie

A long-time Templeton farming family has been left devastated after they were targeted by apparent anti-hemp criminals. [Cal Coast Times]

On Sunday evening, vandals on all-terrain vehicles rode up and down rows of hemp plants destroying the crop worth more than $250,000. The vandals spent about a half hour crushing the two acres of Temple Farms’ crop.

“We are not big ag, we are locals here,” Ryder Nesbitt said. “Several families were depending on the proceeds from this crop.”

For 44 years, members of the Nesbitt family grew commercial flower crops on their Templeton farm. But after the bottom fell out of the flower market, the family switched to hemp.

Last week, the state tested the crop to ensure the amount of THC is at or below the legal level for hemp.

Even though marijuana and hemp are both members of the cannabis family, they have different properties. Marijuana plants produce THC, the intoxicant in pot. Hemp is used to produce paper, cloth and CBD, an ingredient used in supplements, extracts and oils.

Nesbitt had recently struck an arrangement with a buyer to purchase this years crop. Next week, Nesbitt planned to meet with the buyer to seal the deal.

While at the site, the vandals destroyed property, but it appears they did not steal any plants.

“This is more about anti-hemp than theft,” Nesbitt said. “We are trying to do it right, and we just keep getting stepped on.”

After discovering the vandalism, Nesbitt contacted the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Department which has mounted an investigation.

 


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Hmmmm, sounds like a job for Johnny Appleseed ;)


-7

Without impartial regulation—namely a board made up of members without affiliation to either concern—I fear the hemp farmers are in for a tough time. The pot shop dealers obviously have the most money and are already infiltrating local government with their minions. By the way, here’s an interesting article on the topic of cross-pollination:


https://www.leafly.com/news/growing/hemp-cross-pollination-could-damage-cannabis-crops


3

This is Exhibit A for why sane states allow property owners to exercise reasonable force under castle doctrine law.


5

This was not being grown for rope or cloth so it was all female, most grown for meds are female and yes, they go through it and weed out the males. It’s a LOT of work. Whoever said it doesn’t “smell” is wrong, it may not have that skunk smell so many are familiar with but it does have a smell, especially in this heat and so close to harvest. They can and should of gone and picked it all up, it’s NOT lost. I bet they did. Lesson learned. There is hemp being grown all over the county, better get used to it. This market is going to be big with people like Gronkowski coming on board, this market is going to blow up fast.


2

Templeton Farms is upwind of the multiple El Pomar and S. El Pomar proposed marijuana cannabis growing sites. Hemp being grown upwind would certainly have been a direct threat.


4

Big? How ’bout ginormous!

I start on a local hemp harvest on Monday; some 600 acres with a million plus plants to be harvested. The company I’m working for planted 60 acres with some 60,000 plants last year (their first year in this part of the cannabis industry), this year 600 acres with a million plus plants and next year it will be 6,000 acres with whatever amount of plants that acreage can support healthfully.

The profits to be made? I’m not privy to that information but I can tell you this; they pay out better than $80K a week minimum in temporary labor alone, and that’s for 4 to 6 weeks. So, you think about what type of money we’re talking about here…

We’ll be bringing in 80 to 100 hundred harvesters that are expected to work five, ten hour days a week, minimum, at $17 an hour with time-and-a-half overtime where applicable (anything over 40 here in Oregon).

The reason they pay so well? This company is on the cutting edge of a fairly new product, and most often a never mentioned one, CBG extracts. Nope, not CBD, CBG, Read about it…

https://www.leafly.com/news/cannabis-101/what-is-cbg-cannabinoid

https://www.epilepsy.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Fact-Sheet-Cannabinoids-in-Epilepsy.pdf


-1

Same story, new twist, Range Wars, 2019


12

An organized attack by dope-growers. These viscous gangsters are not your peaceful pot-growing hippies. The dope-growers campaigned for years on how cannabis prohibition prevented growing hemp for fabric and oils as done by humans for 5,000 years and grown by US farmers for the military during WWII when the Japanese cut off our Philippine supply. But that was not their motivation. Now they want to ban it to prevent cross-pollination of their drug crop. Everybody needs to fight back by growing hemp, which has no odor and is in fact an excellent ag commodity for fiber and oil, or just a green plant inyour yard or garden.. If you are growing non-commercially you do not need to register with the County as commercial growers do so that Adam Hill can block their permits while approving cannabis dope grows by his contributors. Legal, approved, non-THC seed is available online, or I could just give you some of mine.


12

People apparently will go to great lengths to protect the local wine industry.


12

Very very likely wrong. Chances are greater this was done by the marijuana cannabis farmers. Hemp is a big threat to them from cross-pollination. Do your homework. Of course the marijuana cultivators would love the plausible deniability and rush by some to blame vintners.


13

I think jimmy_me’s post was meant as a joke…

I think you’re probably on to something though. It’s typical “pot wars” type of crap.

Buuuuuut . Don’t put it past your vintners so off handedly, they’ve proven to have criminals types lurkin’ about their rank-and-file…


1

What colossal asshole would do something like that?


13

Helios Dayspring?


8

I hope that whomever did this damage spends a long, long time in prison and is forced to make restitution to the best of their ability.


46

Was it people who were anti-hemp (NIMBYs) or people who were pro-marijuana cultivation who committed this crime? The marijuana growers don’t want hemp to be grown near their crop because of the risk of cross pollination which can adversely affect the THC level in marijuana plants. For those of us who don’t have a dog in this fight it’s a good time to sit back and watch the “weed war” that is about to erupt in this county between the hemp and marijuana growers.


11

Yet, it was a local winery taking issue with the hemp grow of a grower.


A grower; who was going to grow both THC based and non-THC based products.


You act like there is this huge wall between the two industries. That Hemp growers can’t be in the THC growers line of business is erroneous thinking.


I am sure those vehicles that tore up the property came from a nearby ranch, or did they truck them in? Look for them in about a mile and a half radius for the equipment, otherwise they would have been a noticeable “quad gang” en route to the farm.


1

I don’t know if I would call it a wall, but THC marijuana growers don’t want hemp grown in this county because of the risk to their crops profitability posed by cross pollination. They are using lobbyists to try and influence the BOS decision on this matter. I expect that if the BOS decides hemp should be allowed for cultivation as any other Ag crop there will be friction, which will boil over with a few hotheads acting out.


0

They now want ban growing hemp in Oregon. Grow hemp, I do. Nice plant. Smoke it all day and all you’ll get is a very sore throat.


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