Blog Sample: Farm Science

Chemistry Visits: The Do-It-Yourself Ethos of Lazy Moon Ranch

The grow season is once again upon us! In the coming weeks we’ll be profiling some of the amazing craft cultivators we partner with to produce our full-spectrum cannabis products. Chemistry’s mission is to Stay True to the Plant™. We achieve this by thoughtfully preserving the nuance of each cultivar we process, from flavor to effect. But the story really begins with our farms and their amazing sun grown cannabis.

Lazy Moon Ranch is tended by a small, but tenacious group of do-it-yourselfers up in Mendocino County. The farm is located on historic Foster Mountain, a forty minute drive from the nearest town. A true heritage farm, Lazy Moon is run by a tight-knit group of family and friends. The farm’s CEO Jonah Ward (who’s also an artist and truffle entrepreneur) was raised on the remote property.

Jonah’s dad built their Foster Mountain home by hand in the late ‘70s, adding onto it as the family and its needs expanded over the years. The kitchen’s wooden beams are from the old San Francisco pier, reflecting the resourcefulness and artistry of the man who built it. It’s that same spirit that fosters this community’s determination to keep their land and families flourishing.

And one way they maintain that legacy is through their cannabis farm Lazy Moon Ranch.

Lazy Moon happens to be the main source of flower for our beloved high CBD full-spectrum AC/DC tincture. Of all our products, this one gets the most fanmail. But this isn’t the only reason we love the farm. This passionate group of humans doesn’t shy away from a hard day’s work.

Jonah and his small team do everything from scratch–from creating the farm’s energy sources to breeding the plants themselves. Lazy Moon creates and maintains its own sources of power using solar and hydroelectric. And instead of using mother plants to produce clones, they only grow from seed.

There are pros and cons to both growing techniques. Clones are weaker and more susceptible to disease while using seeds adds four to six weeks to the growing period. But patience is another of Lazy Moon’s virtues. The team prefers the hardiness of the seeds and the creativity they offer when it comes to crossing different phenotypes to create new and exciting cultivars. This crossbreeding allows for more freedom and experimentation–two things Lazy Moon embraces with passion.

One of Lazy Moon’s newest experiments is a practice called "hügelkultur." Hügelkultur cultivation techniques are rooted in German horticulture and have been practiced for hundreds of years. Hügelkultur involves creating mounds out of branches and covering the woody material with compost and soil. Simple but extremely effective.

These raised mounds create an environment high in nutrients with air pockets and fantastic water retention. As the organic material in the mounds age, the soil becomes dense with nutrients. And as the wood decomposes, air pockets form and create a tilling-like effect. Perhaps one of the most valuable benefits is the ability of these mounds to retain moisture, making watering a breeze. By reducing labor and environmental waste, hügelkultur is a win-win!

The team at Lazy Moon Ranch are not only open to experimenting with new cultivation techniques, they’re also savvy entrepreneurs. But not the tech kind, more so of the truffle variety. Jonah’s most recent pursuit is a truffle farm–one of the first in California. And Lazy Moon is committed to this vision. They even have an adorable truffle pup that’s being trained to sniff out those highly coveted black diamonds.

Whatever the Lazy Moon Ranch crew can do themselves, they do themselves. This may mean more time, energy and perseverance, but it also no doubt means more learning, growing and thriving. This passionate team stays true to themselves. And it's this spirit that we love and admire about all of our craft farms. The passion, mastery and love these smaller, legacy and heritage farms give to their land and plants creates an end product that can’t be re-created on mass scale. A product we can stand behind with pride.

Chemistry is committed to the subtle qualities of excellence. And Lazy Moon Ranch is the embodiment of that ethos. Be on the lookout soon for Pink Puma (apparently “Pink Panther” has been trademarked), our first full-spectrum vape featuring flower from Lazy Moon Ranch.