Female plants are valued in Humboldt; they produce the buds. The male plants are winnowed and yanked out. When it comes to trimming time, women are valued, too. They do most of the trimming, at about $25 an hour. Cash. Under the table.

Some people might think it’s sorta sexist that women do that work–and there is a sense that most of the trimmers hired for a harvest are young, perky and pretty, leading to grumbles among some of the older workers–but the logic was explained to me by a veteran grower:

It’s more fun and easier to sit around a bunch of women. They are in general better at removing the leaves.  And then there’s the matter of safety.  Women are less likely to organize rip-offs. It’s necessary to have a discreet work force, with some locals supervising and others who short term and not form the area.

An indoor grower gets three harvests a year, and may have the trimming done in a location away from his grow house, again for safety.  Music plays, food is supplied, and while it’s work, it’s more fun than WalMart and higher paying.  A trimming gig can cover the cost of school for a semester, a new car, a trip, or savings.

One woman I spoke to, along time Humboldt resident, had never worked in the ganja business, but after loosing her job was going to take the plunge. She said it was getting harder though to  find a gig because

the trust fund kids come up to earn money for their festival tickets, since their parents won’t give it to them

Gigs are found by word of mouth, through friends of friends, though having worked before for the same grower.

Along with the seasonal, primarily female trimmers, there are men and women who tend large grows and who perform specialized horticulture techniques. Legalization could change the pay for trimming and other related work associated with both indoor and outdoor growing.

For about $15,000 a grower can invest in a machine that turns out perfectly trimmed, standardized buds, a further encroachment on the underground labor pool.

So with legalization, whither or wither Humboldt?