Well you could pretty easily get around it by growing huge monster trees. Figure 2-10 lbs a plant, depending... sure beats the couple of zips you get off the little fellows. However, I have realized those small plants produce buds with way more bag appeal if that is important to you. My personal stash is gnarly looking, leaves and such all over, need to press it into a tire and drive it across some sort of border somewhere.
But yes...even when sort of legal its no ones damn business what I am doing. I won't talk, they won't ask.
Yes, trees are the answer to the 12 plant limit, but trees are also the answer for larger grows on larger, more remote, pieces of property.
I grew up helping my father with two foot wide tomato cages in the garden, now I see cages 6-8 feet wide on remote protected grows, they look like corrals for farm animals. Shit's crazy.
I think we will have to wear two hats. Like you said, plan on trees, which means blowing right through your plant weight limits as a medical patient. I have 24/16oz, but that doesn't do much when the tree has two or three elbows on it. When I cut my plants I become a rec user, and I will use my rec status and the rules governing such grows, which state that there are no weight limits as long as the product stays where it was grown. I have not seen or been notified that you have to claim to be either/or. As long as I'm not transporting large amounts, it's all good. I do not care to discuss trafficking or illegal transportation of plant material as I do not know the TOS, but my I will never leave my grow with more than a few ounces. It's not worth the bullshit if you have to deal with johnny law.
In my opinion, which means nothing, caregivers will keep caregivin' like usual, obviously some will be more legit than others, but as we know that comes with the territory. The 12 plant limit is the county letting you know how it feels, which is that it is more profitable for them when gardens over 12 plants are considered and treated as drug cultivation and intent to distribute. The problem with this culture is that it has always been underground, and people are afraid/apathetic to put any work in on the legislative front lines. We have our spokespeople, but Mason Tvert does not speak for me, and I would like nothing to do with the scamley's. It's hard to find public figures willing to stand up to grandma and grandpa who don't want to smell that sticky icky.
You are right on with the bag appeal though, but that's just with rec users and tourists. Like you, I don't care how pretty or ugly my plants are, they get the job done. As long as I can fit it into a joint it's all the same at that point. I'd take potency and taste over bag appeal any day of the week.
At the end of the day, I would like to keep this hypothetical, hopefully no one reading this ever has to deal with this municipal BS. I imagine there would be more potential issues with 12 trees close to town where neighbors, smells, electric, etc could all bring unwanted attention.
