At CANNA, we’re excited to share passionate grower stories from across Canada that resonate with our community and inspire us to “Grow Big or Grow Home.”
Grower Spotlight
Jen Capobianco, known as @420_Herbivore, is a home grower, advocate, and competition judge from Durham Region. This spring, Capobianco’s four-plant garden actually drew enough attention that local police stopped by to verify she was compliant. Officers, who interrupted her daughter’s birthday party, counted her stalks and went on their way.
Capobianco became a licensed medical cannabis grower due to fibromyalgia. Having grown up during the reefer madness era, she abstained from drugs and alcohol as a teen, which explained her hesitation when a doctor suggested cannabis in 2007.
Jen Capobianco: In my mid-20s, my doctor said, “Have you thought about medical cannabis?” And I laughed. I have two small kids, and I’m married. So, I waited three or four months, then I took her up on it. I got the prescription and, after a year, realized how expensive it was, and mediocre and inconsistent. So, I decided: I’m going to grow!
When were you introduced to CANNA nutrients?
The first nutrient company I used was CANNA. I went to a hydro store, and it was the one that stood out. My brother had also used it for his tomatoes. I taught myself how to grow, and it was working, so I stuck with it.
I became a licensed medical producer in 2016. I went from non-user to consumer to grower very quickly. The one brand I never strayed from was CANNA. I use the Coco A&B and the RHIZOTONIC XP, which is like God’s love juice – I cannot believe the amount of roots it produces.
I always say when I grow CANNA, I outgrow myself. I have a 4x4 area, so how much can I grow? I only feed at 70% now of what they recommend because I’m outgrowing myself.
Last summer, I pulled out the measuring tape, and they were 12 feet tall. The number one question I get is “How do I grow like you?” Every time I say, “it’s CANNA, not me.” The sharpest tool in my toolbox is CANNA nutrients.
Where did you start growing your plants?
I’ve always grown at home. I started in a walk-in closet in my bedroom, because at the time I didn’t want my kids to know what I was doing. I vented it out, and I got a pound out of a small walk-in. That’s not my light; that’s the nutrients. Now I grow in the backyard of a townhouse complex. And no one believes it’s three or four plants.
I grow in coco. I used to grow in five-gallon pots, but I’ve noticed that, for efficiency, and just the way coco feeds and dries out faster than soil, I went down to two-gallon. It’s amazing. I get consistently good weed, I don’t get nutrient lockout, and my plants are always happy.
What’s your fertigation schedule?
I’m a hand waterer because our environment is always fluctuating. The way they drink throughout the growth cycle. They drink differently, too. Even three identical plants, same strain, same seeds, you could have one that’s just going to drink more. So, I just feel the weight by grabbing them by the stalk.
That’s a benefit, too, with the smaller pots and the coco drying out more, I can get more feedings into them.
How do you consume?
Because I have small kids, well, they’re 10 and 12 now, I don’t do any edibles. In our house, it’s just flower. They know what it is, and they don’t touch it.
I want female growers to join me, like, get on this! You don’t have to be a 14-year-old kid with a black grow tent. You can be a classy woman, have your family, and still grow.
There can be setbacks, like this morning I got an email from the Townhouse Corporation saying that not all residents partake in cannabis, and I should not be smoking cannabis in my backyard. But it’s my property, we’re in Canada, and you’re allowed to have your plants.
How active are you in the cannabis community?
I really try to nurture and work myself into the cannabis community. I’ve tried to do it by leading with kindness.
You know, all of us have a story about being bullied, about things we’ve been through, and a lot of us now as adults are introverts with anxiety disorders, and I recognize that. I’m trying to bring people in, and the more I bring in and involve myself, the more welcoming it is.
I have been asked to be a professional cannabis judge. I’ve been invited to multiple private events and tours of facilities. I produce content; there’s one that went viral. It actually happened last year, but I posted it a week ago [May], and it got half a million views. People were livid! They came in like a raid.
Durham Regional Police, the “Joint Task Force,” came in during my daughter’s birthday while I was making dinner. I invited them in. They said they’d never seen a plant this size.
They shook my hand and said, “You know what, keep doing what you’re doing.” They commended me on my knowledge of the plant, and it ended up being a really great experience.
When you started growing, was there anyone you were following for guidance?
I mean, for women, when we want to do something, we want to do it our way.
There was a little bit of trial and error, because every strain and every plant is different. My favourite is actually White Siberian. AK 47 and White Widow cross – the classics.
But I love advocating for women in cannabis and bringing our own seat to the table in a male-dominated industry. Some growers are very supportive, but it’s a rarity. I don’t want their seat; I just want to be recognized for it, and for other women. I want other women to normalize this. Married women, single women, women with kids, whatever. We belong here, too.
Interview by Haley Nagasaki
