A grow house is a property, usually located in a suburban residential neighbourhood, that is primarily used for the

black market A black market, underground economy, or shadow economy is a clandestine market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality or is characterized by noncompliance with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the se ...

production of

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...

, it may be used for the cultivation of other drugs such as

psilocybin mushroom Psilocybin mushrooms, commonly known as magic mushrooms, are a polyphyletic informal group of mushroom, fungi that contain psilocybin which turns into psilocin upon ingestion. Biological genera containing psilocybin mushrooms include ''Psilocyb ...

s. The houses are typically outfitted with extensive

hydroponic Hydroponics is a type of horticulture and a subset of hydroculture which involves growing plants, usually crops or medicinal plants, without soil, by using water-based mineral nutrient solutions in aqueous solvents. Terrestrial or aquatic plan ...

equipment to provide water, food, and light to the plants, and the houses themselves are usually kept in good condition to blend in with the neighbourhood. Illegal electrical hookups are a common feature of grow houses, to both save money and to make it harder for authorities to identify them due to their unusually high electrical usage.

Law enforcement response

In the United Kingdom illegal cannabis growers usually bypass electric meter readers and "abstract" the electricity which is an offence in its own right. In the last ten years authorities in both the United Kingdom and the United States of America have become more aware of grow houses and have introduced policies focusing law enforcement, local government authorities, energy providers and landlords on disruption and detection of illegal grow houses. In the United Kingdom the Proceeds of Crime Bill targets criminal profits and unevidenced sources of income from convicted drug producers. Local media run regular stories advising local people on what to look out for including rarely visited properties with blacked out windows or with high levels of humidity on the inside. However, professional criminals are often able to defeat these efforts with the use of low-power lighting,

activated charcoal "Activated" is a song by English singer Cher Lloyd. It was released on 22 July 2016 through Vixen Records. The song was made available to stream exclusively on ''Rolling Stone'' a day before to release (on 21 July 2016). Background In an interv ...

filters, tube or inline fans, cooling systems and hydroponic systems.

In popular culture

In ''

Tigerlily's Orchids ''Tigerlily's Orchids'' is a 2010 book by the British crime-writer Ruth Rendell. It is her 60th published novel. Critical reception ''Tigerlily's Orchids'' was well received by critics. Sue Gaisford of ''The Independent'' wrote in a positive r ...

'', a 2010 novel by British crime-writer

Ruth Rendell Ruth Barbara Rendell, Baroness Rendell of Babergh, (; 17 February 1930 – 2 May 2015) was an English author of thrillers and psychological murder mysteries. Rendell is best known for creating Chief Inspector Wexford.The Oxford Companion ...

, a central plot theme is the operation of a grow house. A neighbour assumes his own house is so warm in winter because he has good insulation. However, his house is actually kept warm by the high heat from the grow house. In the second season of the TV series '' Weeds'', the protagonist begins operating a grow house to better support her marijuana-selling operation.

Notes

{{reflist, 2 Cannabis cultivation

Law enforcement response

In popular culture

See also

Notes