Abstract
This qualitative study describes members of a little-known and little-researched subculture: small-time marijuana cultivators in the United States. Couched within a symbolic interaction theoretical framework, extensive ethnographic interviews were conducted with eighteen marijuana growers who cultivate cannabis plants in their homes for small sales and personal use. This study creates a typology of growers based on motivation for growing and techniques of cultivation. The authors also illustrate how marijuana growers in this study used various techniques outlined by Sykes and Matza (Citation1957) to neutralize their involvement in a deviant and illegal activity.
Notes
1“Kind bud” refers to good quality marijuana. “Schwag” or “swag” refers to low grade, poorly cured and prepared marijuana.
2There is a sizable amount of research on marijuana safety conducted in a clinical setting with standardized dosing but there is scant research on the safety associated with marijuana consumption based on plant type or growing method (see Gurley et al. Citation1998; Zimmer and Morgan Citation1997). “Safety,” however, continues to be a running theme for most growers.
3This is a specific concern for medicinal users who are looking for a specific form of relief rather than a simple high.
4“Couch-lock is a colloquial term that refers to a state of intoxication that suppresses desire for physical or cognitive activity.
5The three major varieties are Cannabis Indica, Cannabis Sativa, and Cannabis Ruderalis. Because marijuana in the wild can cross-pollinate with other marijuana plants there are potentially endless variations of these three known varieties.