College is a time when students work a plethora of odd jobs to help pay the bills.
In Chico, many students find jobs in bars, restaurants, clothing stores and on medical cannabis farms.
Ok, so maybe that last one isn’t exactly a normal job for most students.
Daniel Stavens line of work is what sets him apart from most students, this 22 year-old history major, stumbled upon an extremely odd job out of desperation.
Stavens had decided to take a semester off from school when, his parents decided that no school meant no cash to help support him. Unemployed and in need of rent money, Stavens began searching for a job.
With a recommendation from a friend, Stavens began working on a medical cannabis farm in May of 2010.
“It was actually a friend that got me into it,” said Stavens. “ I wasn’t going to school, and I needed a job and she told me she knew of some people that were starting a medical marijuana farm.”
The job was supposed to be temporary, Stavens was hired to dig holes for a new crop of plants. After his first week Stavens’ employer asked him if he would be interested in working for the entire growing season, which will come to a close in the coming weeks.
The process of growing medical cannabis is hard work and can require long hours during different points of the season.
Stavens began working only twenty hours a week, but since it is now the harvest season his hours have more than doubled. The long hours are apparent in Stavens’ appearance, messy hair, tired eyes, calloused hands and pair of muddy boots are a testament to this student’s hard work.
The long hours put in by Stavens will not only provide him with financial compensation, but also with the reward of knowing his work helped to benefit a friend.
David Trethewey, a 21 year-old Butte college student and close friend of Stavens, has a medical prescription for cannabis and currently has three plants growing on the farm where Stavens works.
Trethewey suffered an injury while using a chainsaw that caused severe nerve damage in his hand that causes an almost constant numbness. Tracing an outline on his hand toward his fingers, he shows the upper part of his hand that has no feeling.
The use of prescribed medical cannabis helps Trethewey to regain some of the feeling in his hand, and also helps with any pain caused by the nerve damage.
“When I smoke the feeling in my hand comes back to a certain degree,” Trethewey said.
The plants that are grown on the farm where Stavens works are all owned by prescription holders like Trethewey.
Stavens has learned a lot about horticulture and all of the processes associated with growing medical marijuana from his work experiences.
“I learned a lot about irrigation and fertilizers, I know what types of nutrients the plants need and how to lay irrigation lines,” Stavens said.
The start to finish process of growing medical marijuana comes with both financial and security risks. Theft is prevalent among cannabis farms, especially those grown outdoors.
Aside from being cautious about revealing the location of the farm, Stavens and the other employees take turns staying overnight in the garden as added security to prevent theft.
Martin Altbrich, a medical cannabis grower in the Sacramento area is extremely discreet about the location of his cannabis garden, housing his plants in a specially designed growing shed that he built himself.
Much like Stavens, Altbrich puts in hours of work each week to care for his crop of plants.
“The hard work for me usually starts after the harvest,” said Altbrich. “ I do all the work myself, but some people have employees or friends that come in to help with the drying and clipping.”
After the harvest season is over Stavens does not intend on returning to this line of work. The long days of manual labor and nights spent sleeping outdoors were enough to change Stavens mind on a career in growing medical cannabis.
