MJBiz - July/August 2024 - 43

While those measures satisfied
the Risdens, they also wanted others
to know Lyme Rising was growing
cannabis sustainably.
" If I'm going to do this, and I want
to be taken seriously, then we need
to certify our farm to show we will
do everything there is to be done in
organic, regenerative, closed loops, "
Nick Risden told MJBizMagazine.
Lyme Rising received its
certification from Dragonfly Earth
Medicine Pure (aka DEM Pure),
which sets strict rules for growers.
The certification does not allow:
* Petrochemical solvents.
* Feminized seeds.
* Synthetic fertilizers, pesticides,
fungicides or herbicides.
Soil needs to contain at least
85% plant-based materials under
DEM Pure certification, and no
genetically modified organisms,
hydroponic, aeroponic or soil-less
media are permitted. Synthetic pots
aren't allowed, nor are fungicides or
pesticides for cloning.
The Risdens have neighbors that
donate cow manure and straw to
their farm, but otherwise they are
doing it all on their own.
When Nick Risden grew illicit
cannabis in Kentucky, he had to
grow indoors, in tight quarters.
Now, he's using the sun and giving
the plants all the space they need.
Before planting, the couple digs
holes 6-8 feet deep, then layers
logs, compost and leaves in the
pits-similar to the ultra-frugal
hügelkultur agriculture method,
except underground and not in a
raised bed.
Shannon Risden feeds the plants
homemade concoctions, such as
compost made from chicken, goat
and pig excrement that's heavy on
minerals and supplemented with
wood chips and organic topsoil
brought in from nearby suppliers.
When the Risdens had to cut
down a large tree on their property,
Closed-loop farmers enrich their soils
using homemade compost and other
materials from their farms.
Photo by stock.adobe.com/Naya Na
they discovered it was filled with
insects. They collected the frass, or
dried insect excrement, and their
plants loved it.
Now, because they don't have a
way to collect insects, they buy frass
as well as humate fertilizer and
Lush Roots, a tea made by Dragonfly
Earth Medicine.
They also feed their plants microbial
substances such as KNF lactic
acid bacteria and fermented comfrey
extract, which is high in potassium,
amino acids, enzymes and calcium.
Water comes from a well and a pond
on the property, and there's also a
catchment to collect rainwater.
To prevent septoria, a fungal
disease that wrinkles the leaves of
cannabis plants, the Risdens heavily
mulch with woodchips and straw,
which gets up to a foot high by the
end of the growing season.
The two biggest pest concerns
at Lyme Rising Farm are deer and
aphids, which the Risdens combat
using companion planting. Entire
beds of radishes, turnips and greens
are for the deer, and while it's kept
the wildlife away from the cannabis,
they continue to eat the farm's
apples and lettuce.
Marigolds, dill and tobacco attract
the aphids, and so far, that has
helped keep them away from the
cannabis plants.
" It's really cool to see, actually,
because they will cover a tobacco
plant and there will be nothing on
the cannabis plant right beside it, "
Shannon Risden said.
She also keeps 40 bird feeders
in operation during the growing
season, because birds kill moths.
" If we don't have moths, then
we don't have to deal with the
caterpillars on our plants, " Nick
Risden said.
Shannon Risden increasingly
is growing non-cannabis crops,
such as flowers and produce, to
supplement the family's income
because cannabis prices continue
to be so low. That, too, has helped
their cannabis farm, experimenting
with companion planting, which
brings in beneficial insects such as
ladybugs and praying mantis.
But for Nick Risden, growing
cannabis is a matter of survival.
Risden says he feels lucky to have
an ongoing therapeutic plan that
involves medical marijuana as well
as intravenous immunoglobulin
infusion therapy and talk therapy
to help him process everything he's
been through, which includes 40
surgeries in recent years.
" I'm not magically just going to
get better, " Nick said.
" Each year, I'm like, 'Is this our
last year that we're going to do this?'
I'll always grow for myself, but it's
hard to be able to do it to this level. "
mjbizdaily.com | July-August 2024 43
http://stock.adobe.com/Naya http://www.mjbizdaily.com
MJBiz - July/August 2024

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