“At eighteen years old, I tried to become a weed dealer. I was horrible at it. I smoked all of my supply and failed miserably!”
This is where cannabis and Victoria Rouland started, but she never imagined how far the relationship would go.
Fast forward a few years and Victoria is a grower, breeder, healer, and one of the most respected names in cannabis. You might recognize her from Instagram as QueenVmedz, Victoriousmedz, and the Weed Nerd. If not, then you’ll almost certainly have heard of her via Subcool (more about that later).
For now, we want to focus solely on Victoria. What attracted her to the herb? What kept her interested? And why, after many successful years in the industry, is she so excited about teaming up with Homegrown Cannabis Co.?
How it began for Victoria Rouland
For Victoria Rouland, cannabis was a super-effective alternative to alcohol. She saw first-hand the damage alcohol addiction can cause, and found herself depending on drinking far too much.
“I was using it for everything. From handling stress, trying to be happy, using it to socialize. Concentrates helped me tremendously, I mean, I can live a normal life now, raise my kids and be a good parent.”
There are tens of thousands of people who share Victoria’s story, who have used cannabis to purge themselves of harmful, addictive substances. It’s interesting that the substances our customers mention the most tend to be legal: alcohol, opiates, prescription pills… you can make up your own mind on that.
What’s kept her going?
Choosing the bong over the bottle, for us, is just the beginning. For people like Victoria, true peace can only be found in the garden.
“Going into the grow room and just turning off the world…it’s my time. I don’t let anything get in my head when I’m growing.”
It’s a place to be mindful, to meditate, to focus all her energy on the life she’s shaping and nurturing. But there’s a bigger picture, there’s more to it than personal satisfaction.
“Growing your own is important. I work with a lot of medical patients and it’s often too expensive to buy it at dispensaries.”
Victoria Rouland works closely with people who use marijuana to medicate, who need regular medicine at a fair price. She’s been helping people get access to the right meds, teaching them how to grow their own, promoting independence and choice. Helping people overcome their reliance on dispensaries.
“Dispensaries tend to want to put in for profit and it’s not about the meds at that point.”
Growing your own is an evolution. It’s the next step from being just a consumer. If you can grow you can share… share your skills, share your knowledge, share your stash. But you need the right information and guidance, you need to know there are people out there, like Victoria, who are willing to help. Especially beginners. We’re confident Victoria understands this more than anyone…
“They need the access and the information that Homegrown Cannabis Co. can get out to them. Homegrown helps them, and lets them know they’re not alone.”
Growing cannabis can be easy, once you know how. But even with all the knowledge in the world, you’re still at the mercy of the seeds. Good seeds are vital to a good grow, and this is all down to the breeding.
“What you wanna do with breeding is you want your plant to be stable. You want to be able to pop a seed and say, this is what it’s gonna do. You can help patients better that way… you can’t really help with an unstable plant like an F1 or an S1… you get a lot of different phenos… it’s a gene pool at that point, you don’t know what you’re gonna get until you pop the seed.”
Remembering… and looking forward
Victoria and husband, Will Rouland, were best friends with late cannabis icon, Subcool. A legend who’ll be remembered as one of the finest cannabis breeders of his generation. Over the years, Subcool (both on his own and through partnerships, collaborations, and enterprises like TGA and The Dank) has created some iconic cultivars.
Strains like Jack the Ripper, Querkle, Chernobyl, Vortex, Jesus OG and Cheesequake wouldn’t exist without Subcool.
Victoria and Will helped him rebuild and relocate to Arizona after a 2017 fire destroyed almost everything he had, including 4 million seeds and a fine collection of breeding plants.
“When his house burned down, that’s when I really met Sub. We helped him get back whatever genetics he could because he lost a lot of it in the fire. He was only supposed to come out to Arizona for a bit, but he fell in love with the weather. It was really good for his Alpha…”
Subcool suffered from alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, a genetic lung disease. He passed away in February 2020, owing to complications from the illness.
“To the world he was a cannabis activist. To me and my family he was my big brother and my kids uncle.”
Victoria and Will continue his proud legacy, and have teamed up with Homegrown as an official breeding partner. A relationship we could not be happier about.
“Why did we team up with Homegrown? One: the educational platform is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Two: the genetics catalog. And three: their advocacy for home growers.”
For our part, we want to help Subcool the company carry on the traditions that Subcool the man created. Amazing, original genetics. A sense of fun. And an unwavering passion for homegrown cannabis.
“The collaboration between Subcool and Homegrown is gonna be epic.”
We couldn’t have put it better ourselves.
Victoria Rouland’s Homegrown Cultivars
You’ve met Victoria, now we’d like you to meet the next best thing… her Homegrown Cannabis Co. cultivars.
Victoria’s Rainbow Glue Regular
With so much sticky goodness, simply touching Victoria’s Rainbow Glue is enough to make you smile; take a toot and you’ll be happy for hours. The high begins with a fast-acting energetic blow (it can be dizzying having every negative thought chased from your mind) but the aftermath is a serene euphoria, a calm, glassy high with clear eyes.
This mental tranquility is reflected in a placid physical buzz… a deep, sensual massage better than hours of hot stone therapy. If you’re thinking about growing your first regs, there are few strains better to start with than Rainbow Glue. Solid, sticky and delicious.
Quick grow tip: keep on top of your pruning, thinning out the lower canopy to allow more light penetration and maximum bud development. It’s an easy way to increase yield and especially effective with the fast-growing Glue.
Victoria’s Durban Poison Feminized
With a THC level of 17%, Victoria’s Durban Poison delivers an AWESOME high! It’s quick to hit and slow to fade, everything you could ever wish for. Durban Poison gets to work with an all-over massage, really physical and relaxing, but this develops into a creative high as sparkling as her trichomes. The stone is intoxicating but rarely couch-locks, delivering hours of enjoyable relaxation before sliding you towards a peaceful slumber.
Quick grow tip: If your indoor grow area has limited vertical space (as most do) or growing a giant is just not in the plan, implementing a Screen of Green (ScrOG) setup helps. It restricts the height of the plants, making them grow wide with an even, beautiful carpet of colas. You’re going to love it.
Victoria’s Harlequin Kush Regular
If you’re looking for a daytime bud that will skyrocket your productivity, look no further than Harlequin Kush. Its uplifting effects spread good vibes and shut off worrying thoughts without any mind-altering effects.
Besides this positive mood, it can also boost focus, so it can be enjoyed even when working to a busy schedule. In terms of its physical influence, Victoria’s Harlequin Kush has a beautifully balanced effect – energizing and strangely calm.
Quick grow tip: Victoria’s Harlequin Kush is squat and bushy with plenty of lateral branching. You’ll need to prune unnecessary leaves and branches to prevent moisture build-up. Airflow, light penetration, temperature and humidity in the grow area must also be well regulated to fend off pests and pathogens. Simple advice, but it’s easy to overlook the basics.