Interview by Sam Long and Ronit Pinto, Article by Felisa Rogers
Born in an Oakland basement, Dubz Garden is the masterwork of Frank Walker, a legacy cultivator known for his killer instinct with strains. The California-based brand has attained a cult following with Peanut Butter Breath, Coconut Horchata, and their famous Bernie Hana Butter.
What Is Dubz Garden?
Since 2016, Dubz Garden has gone from the eight-light operation in Oakland to a 450-light facility in Hayward, California, where they produce most of their product. Walker works in close partnership with Cozmo, the award-winning music producer and founder of La Coz Exotics. The friends constantly collaborate to enhance both their brands. Walker says that despite high demand, he only sources from a handful of other farms because he’s devoted to maintaining the standards that make Dubz Garden top shelf.
“Everything is testing over 30% THC, all the cannabis smells perfect and is trimmed to perfection, and it just smokes really, really well,” he says.
We sat down with Walker and Jason D (Jay), who works in sales and distribution for the brand. Here’s what we learned:
Dubz Garden is all about the old school connections.
Walker goes way back with both Jason D and Coz. “The first time I met Jay, I was on my way home from high school. I was just walking down the street and Jay pulled up in a suburban van,” Walker remembers. “It was like, ‘Hey, what's going on?’ And now we’ve known each other for 30 years.”
He smoked his first joints with Jay while cutting class, and the trust developed during long friendships is an essential part of his business ethos.
Strain hunting has been the secret to success from day one.
California is a notoriously oversaturated market and home to the most discerning heads. Walker knew that to survive, he had to create a product that stood out. He found the perfect strain in Gorilla Glue Number Four.
“It had just won the High Times Cannabis Cup and was incredibly hard to get,” he says. “It was one of the strains that were super fire. It had the press and everyone going crazy.”
While the strain went viral, Walker went hunting and was finally able to procure cuts from a Michigan grower. He thinks they were the first to grow the strain in the Bay Area.
“Frank's an expert at buying and being able to recognize the right strains, the right flowers,” Jason D says. “That sets us apart from people who have a different bag with the same product in it.”
Bernie Hana Butter was created by accident.
Back in Frank’s legacy days, an Oreos plant went full hermaphrodite and spread pollen across his grow room, which contained several other strains. “It crossed with Jet Fuel Gelato and Guava and made the Bernie Hana Butter seeds accidentally. It pheno hunted itself,” Franks says with a chuckle.
He thought the combo could be interesting so he saved the seeds and eventually sent the best phenotype to Cozmo, who instantly knew they had something special. He passed it on to Berner, who loved it so much that it remains the only Cookies strain he’s chosen to name after himself.
Even as Dubz Garden expands into new markets, they’re dedicated to their roots.
“Oakland has always been synonymous with hustling and blue collar work,” Walker says. “So that's how we operate our business. We want to hustle… hustle with the blue collar mentality. Nothing's really been given to us and we want to just kind of build off that.” Their two California grow partners are located in Oakland, they always prioritize hiring Oakland folks, and they reflect Oakland style in their merch.
They retain their reputation by keeping it fresh.
Although Frank assures their erstwhile fans that the famous Peanut Butter Breath will return, the team is busy churning out exciting new products. Aficionados should keep an eye out for Baby Herman (a Zkittlez x Zoap cross from La Coz), Zeppoles (which has tested at 43.9% THC), as well as iterations of their bestselling Horchata line. We can also expect to see vape cartridges, hash holes, and pre-rolls.
To wrap up the interview, we asked Walker and Jason D if they consider their relationship with cannabis to be medicinal. Walker says it’s mostly for fun, but Jason D gets philosophical: “I'm a lifelong smoker of cannabis. So I mean, yeah, I'm medicating. Is there a specific ailment that I have for which I medicate? Life? It's great for life.”
For more about Dubz Garden, visit dubzgarden.com or follow @dubz_garden on Instagram.
*A version of this article originally appeared in Honeysuckle's 17th print edition, featuring Havoc of Mobb Deep. Get your copy now at dispensaries nationwide or click here to order!
--
Written By:
Felisa Rosa Rogers is a writer and editor based in rural Oregon. She was the editor-in-chief at MJBI, a news source for cannabis industry professionals, and a senior writer for Grow Magazine. Her stories have appeared in The Guardian, 1859, National Geographic, The Breakthrough Journal, and Vox, among many other publications. She got her start as a culinary columnist for Salon and a contributing writer for The People's Guide to Mexico, which Harper's called "The best guidebook to adventure in the whole world." Find out more about Felisa at felisarogers.com.
@FelisaRogers23 (Twitter)
Interview By:
Sam C. Long is Honeysuckle's Creative Director. He is a filmmaker, photographer and visual artist. Find out more about Sam at samclong.com.
@tissuekulture (IG)
Ronit Pinto is founder and publisher of the award-winning creative media house Honeysuckle Media, Inc. A journalist, filmmaker and producer, Ronit has spearheaded many groundbreaking initiatives such as the first campaign to feature cannabis and hemp brands on Times Square billboards, which changed decades of advertising in NYC. Among her and Honeysuckle's honors, Ronit won the Green Market Report Women in Media Leadership Award in 2022 and was named a New York Cannabis Power Player by AMNY in 2023.
@honey_ronit (IG)
@honey_ronit (Twitter)
--
Find Out More On Social
--
Featured image: Dubz Garden's Frank Walker and Jason D in Honeysuckle's 17th print edition (C) Sam C. Long / Honeysuckle Media, Inc. @tissuekulture
