“Joseph is a 4th Generation Willits native, and we have a 5th generation on the way,” beams Katie Jeane, steward and farmer at Emerald Spirit Botanicals. Katie, her son Joseph, his wife Catherine and her son River live and farm west of Willits. “We go back multiple generations,” Katie notes.

Katie has been in deep relationship with the land since she was a young woman and is someone who has developed the skill of self-listening, which helps attune her life with Spirit and follow a path of purpose. When you listen, you are called, and Katie’s followed her inner guidance many times. Three times in particular, the calling has dramatically changed Katie’s life.

“I’ve always been someone who has lived off the land. When I was 24, I gathered up all the money I could and purchased a property in First Gate. My sons were 3 and 5 at the time. I set up a teepee and was called to build a cob house- the first one permitted in California.” Katie worked as a bookkeeper during the seven years it took to construct her home.

Her children attended the Waldorf School of Mendocino County. Serendipitously, Katie’s recognition of her next calling- to be a teacher- was almost immediately followed by a job offer at the Waldorf School. “I taught kindergarten for six years, and then I heard the calling of cannabis.”

A botanist and herbalist, Katie was familiar with cannabis. “We always had big vegetable gardens, with farm tours and field trips to the cob house.” When her calling to cultivate cannabis occurred, Katie listened and responded. “I was clearly hearing, ‘You are supposed to be doing this.’ I decided to quit my job, which I loved, and go into cannabis.” That was 15

years ago, and since then, Katie and the family have continued to grow vegetables, raise bees and produce unique, award-winning flower.

The family farm can truly be described as a garden, with vegetables, culinary and medicinal herbs growing freely alongside the cannabis plants. Rather than planting in rows, Katie prefers to give each plant its own spot- choosing to focus on the provision of plant health and vigor over a packed canopy. A bee “castle” takes a central spot in the garden, and the farm is CCOF certified as well as Sun and Earth Certified, meaning that the cannabis produced at these farms exceeds organic standards and is cultivated using holistic, responsible and regenerative gardening practices.

In 2014, Katie was introduced to CBD. “I was very curious and passionate about it. I received seeds from Jude Nagle of Hope Springs Farm, which needed to be tested and trialed. I started doing vegetative ratio testing with Pure Analytics. Through vegetative ratio testing, I discovered that I’d already been intuitively selecting plants for CBD. I wove our different CBD genetics together. At that point, I realized this was the next step along the path- learning the language of CBD.”

At first, Katie focused on creating high-CBD strains that showed potential in the treatment of seizures and inflammatory conditions. “Then the plant told me my path was to bring the one-to-one ratios forward to the people- a general, more all-purpose medicine.”

Katie continued to listen to the plants and follow their lead. “I asked Spirit, ‘How can I help the plant evolve and bring forward its new gifts? What is the medicinal compound we need right now?’” What came forward was THCV.

Often miscast as a “minor cannabinoid,” THCV is yet another remarkable offering from the cannabis plant. “THCV has many promising medicinal qualities from supporting blood sugar regulation to increasing bone density. On the farm we relate it to three primary characteristics: it is uplifting and joyful, assists with appetite regulation and has a unique connection to vision and sight.” For Katie, these attributes make THCV a much-needed addition to today’s cannabis pantheon.

“Many people live in a culture of depression. We are addicted to consumption and often demonstrate a lack of foresight. THCV has a quality of joy- to help with depression, to help regulate food- how and what we consume, and to assist with vision- how we imagine and manifest a joy-infused future. It’s hard to be in a visionary space unless you’re uplifted and focused. On an energetic level, I see these three qualities of THCV’s effects to be very supportive to humanity at this time.”

Today, the family is producing cannabis that has a one-to-one relationship between THC and other selected cannabinoids. “We like to explore the place in the middle, not the extremes of the biggest or strongest. The middle is what’s realistic- for the enjoyment of life and to live in balance. I believe we are what we consume. If we are using cannabis as medicine, I recommend exploring a healing process with balanced cannabis. There are always situations where a single high cannabinoid is what people need, but most people may not need to use a single high-cannabinoid cannabis in a chronic way.”

“We are committed to opening people’s minds to some of the other amazing gifts that cannabis has to offer.” And the family’s commitment has led to accolades from the public and the cannabis community, with the farm’s Pink Boost Goddess receiving 1st Place for 3rd Party certified Sun Grown Flower at the 2021 Emerald Cup, the SC Lab Award for the highest testing THCV flower in California and the Regenerative Farm Award at the 2021 Emerald Cup.

Emerald Spirit entered Pink Boost Goddess in the KMI. Visit them on Instagram and their website at https://emeraldspiritbotanicals.com.