Growing in Berlin, worth the trouble?

Hi all,

Sorry for the lack of Deutsch, but my german is still at the very beginner level.

I moved to Berlin few months ago and now thinking to return to my dear hobby of growing my own weed. I've been growing for years (in my home country), so I'm aware of the tricks of keeping it to myself. However, as I'm not in my home country now, I'm conserned how getting-caught situation are handled in Germany and in Berlin specifically.

So, how risky it is to grow in my flat in Berlin? Will the neighbours rat me in if they smell the flowers or see some weird light? If I invite people to my house, will they call the police because I'm doing something illegal? If janitor/repair guy comes in while I'm not there (say, he's there to fix the toilet), will he inform the police about my growbox full of plants?

If it happens, that someone calls the police that there's some cannabis growing in my flat, how will the police react? Will they come immediately busting in with special forces shouting "halt! halt! halt!"? Or will they ring the doorbell and do it in a very friendly way?

If I had, let's say 3-4 plants and I get caught, what will I get? A ticket/fine? How much? Will I get prosecuted in court? Will they confiscate my growing equipment or do I get to keep it and they will only take the bushes?

So, is it worth the trouble to grow my own or should I just stick to the dodgy people at Görli?

Any and all advice, comments and recommendations are highly welcome! I really wish to get back to my hobby as for me it's the process, not just the end result.

Hello and welcome in germaica
my english is not the best but i try to do my best to answer your questions

there are very many german people that are like "oh no its illegal i'll give the police a call and lets see whats happnin" this are the same people who call the police when you listen to musik after 22 o'clock and that take fotos when your dog is shittin on the street and you don't take the shit with u.. u understand what i mean!? but i think you should see if your neighbours and your neighbourhood is cool...

when janitor/repair guy comes its the same you can be lucky and the bwoy just loughing with his crew about the garden inna your flat or he can call the police. but i guess they wouldn't call the police cause they make money on you

i guess people u invite to your home are people u like so they won't call the police... if people don't like your ganja but like u it's maybe just some topic for a discussion..

me just preferin that nobody knows about the garden cause its safe... police wont bust you and blackhead gangsters with guns wont come to steal the whole shit. berlin is a big city so talk spreads out wide and maybe rthe wrong person hears that he can get some good dope at your place..

just be carfull with the people u inviting to visit your garden.


me not from berlin but i guess its a different toilet but the same shit^^


if the police wanna bust you they ring your bell. when they ring u don't have to let them in accept they got a "durchsuchungsbefehl" thats a paper which allowes them to search your flat for illegal stuff. if they haven't ot it you can say "ihr könnt mich mal" and close the door u propally should clean your flat for next time cause they might come back with this paper.

when they enter your flat and they'll find your stuff i think they grab all ur utilities until you get sentenced.. i'm not sure in this point cause i've never been in this situation and i don't know other growers been busted.
if you get sentenced first time i guess you just have to pay big money und it's all right but i don't really know...


i hope u understand some words

greetings to green berlin

Thanks for the reply s0x! It does help me to understand what it might be like to grow here. Of course, people in Germany, like everywhere else, will have different opinions about ganja and growing it, so generalizations only work to a certain extent. But it does help to understand...

Based on what you wrote, it sounds very similar to how I would handle it back home. Just don't tell anyone and keep the garden a secret, even with your friends, if you're not sure what they think. That way you should have a low risk and you can enjoy your harvesting time before anyone steals it or the police busts you Right?

What I think I will do is to wait a bit to get a better grasp how people are like in my building and maybe talk about growing with my friends and see what they think. Hopefully I will get the courage to start my next harvest soon.

Thanks!

Whats up Hank!

I moved to germany 6 years ago, and I have been growing 3 of these years. I have not come across people who were cop callin bastards really, but they do exist.

Its not risky to grow your own weed at all as long as you

1. Have a job/study

2. Dont sell any weed!!

Germany is very socialist. Most dealers are out of work and take advantage of the socialist system and get money from the government and sell drugs to get more money. These are the people who the police is after, they tap phonecalls mostly.

If you grow you are even helping to keep these people out of business.

The penalty for a 4-5 plant grow op is a slap on the wrist. Remeber the highest penalts for growing pot in Germany is 5 years jail. These are people with warehouse-size grow ops that go to jail. You dont have to worry.

I wouldnt talk to your friends about growing. I havent met 1 person in Germany who even had a clue about it.

Also very important: Do not buy anything over the internet!! unless you have someone else do it for you.

German cops can get all Electronic payment records easily. Pay cash only in a growshop of your choice. Also try to buy it all at once because I have had it happen to me that the cops were waiting outside of a growshop and tried to bust me because I bought a bong.. lol I told them it was for tobacco only.. But what if your hauling out a 400w HPS, cooltube, or ferts?

Try to keep the closet hidden.. Like hang a curtain infront of it to conceal it even more. USE A CARBON FILTER!!!!! I wouldnt grow without one!

Be nice to your neighbors and you should have no problem. I got my shit on my balcony where my neighbor can peek and see it but they are cool..

I hope you get started soon!

peace

just do it man, dont sell, dont tell dont smell and you should be fine.
and always have a smile and and be friendly to your neighbours.

agree with the other posters!

many gangsters in berlin, keep an eye on that!

mrmcbean: very well said! agree on all of it!

about being asked from cops what you plan on doing with the stuff bought in a growshop: know your rights! you only have to give the policemen your personal data (like name, age and adress) but you never have to tell them anything about what you are doing, where you are going or wether you plan on growing tons of weed with that 1000 hps lamps

p.s. anyways in berlin it's really not problematical... if you are in bavaria, always think twice about what you do

Sideshow-Bob said:

about being asked from cops what you plan on doing with the stuff bought in a growshop: know your rights! you only have to give the policemen your personal data (like name, age and adress)

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I would say it is my duty to tell them my name and address. Can´t do anything against it. I would love to say it is my right to remain silent and walk away.

Anyway, at the moment I have to give them my private data and preconditioned I am growing at home, I know I am fucked! How high is the chance they will not visit your place? Even if there is a small chance you will not feel comfortable anymore. After giving private data I would walk straight home with looking serveral times around (yeah I am paranoid) and than cut all my plants, clean up the whole garden and get lost of every gramm of weed....down the toilet. So now you know how I felt when I was the only customer in a growshop and a police car was stopping in front of it. Just for thee seconds I thougt "i´m done".... but after looking into the window they drove on. As long as cannabis is illegal they are not my friends!


BW

Thanks all for your insights! I really appreciate it. Back home I did grow in secret and never told anyone about it, never sold it or even gave out any of it. For me it's a personal thing and I'd like to keep it that way.

One question though:

Also very important: Do not buy anything over the internet!! unless you have someone else do it for you.

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Why not buy something from the internet? Is the Zoll checking every package? If I shouldn't buy seeds from the internet, where should I buy them from?

Not long ago there was a german growshop busted, called "catweasel". From what I have read the owner did some illegal business. When the police searched their business rooms they took the computer and found customer data. Over a period of two or three months they visited nearly every customer in germany who ordered via internet. Even if the order was two years ago or the order was just one litre fertilizer or a book. There were customer who had completely forgotten they made a order and SURPRISE!! the police searched the apartement. So the safest way is to pay cash in the shop..... you never know.

BW

berlinweed said:

I would say it is my duty to tell them my name and address. Can´t do anything against it. I would love to say it is my right to remain silent and walk away.

Anyway, at the moment I have to give them my private data and preconditioned I am growing at home, I know I am fucked! How high is the chance they will not visit your place? Even if there is a small chance you will not feel comfortable anymore. After giving private data I would walk straight home with looking serveral times around (yeah I am paranoid) and than cut all my plants, clean up the whole garden and get lost of every gramm of weed....down the toilet. So now you know how I felt when I was the only customer in a growshop and a police car was stopping in front of it. Just for thee seconds I thougt "i´m done".... but after looking into the window they drove on. As long as cannabis is illegal they are not my friends!


BW

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yep i would do the same!!!

Why not fom the internet???

some month ago a internet grow shop Catwis** was busted and all the growers how ordered, too

Seed is not a problem to order!!!
i would suggest to order it from ....Austria!! its EU.. googel for the zenseed reseller



Hank....if u have another option as ordering it from/to your home do it!!!

berlinweed just said, that it is the safest way, if you buy all stuff via cash in a shop.
and that's absolutely right, because you don't leave any traces.

you are talking about catfuckingweasel. see...some years ago the same shit happened to a lot of customers from the austrian seedshop "hanfsamen.at" (aka "cannabis in austria"). just because of similar reasons, as the owners also were somewhat foolish.

although I agree, that ordering seeds via internet is not that big problem, as there are a lot of nice shops, not only in austria, but worldwide. you can even order in netherlands, uk, spain, denmark and so on. I never had any trouble. (although I'm actually waiting for some seeds from canada...for 6 weeks now.lol. still the letter hasn't arrived yet)

Ach so, I see what you guys mean. I've always ordered my seeds from seed shops in Netherlands and never had any troubles. I thought you warned about ordering from internet because the customs might give me hard time, but obviously you're referring to something that happened in Germany.

So to sum it up, ordering seeds to Germany from abroad, via internet, should not be a problem

@93|93, I once ordered seeds from US (not cannabis, tomatoes mind you) and it took 8 weeks to Europe, so hang in there, they will come eventually

Since we're on the topic, what do you guys think is gonna happen in Germany in terms on legalization/decriminalization in the next few years?

Recently there was an EU report that the penalization of cannabis varies drastically in different EU countries and that the EU would like to have similar penalties in all the countries. So we have everything between the decriminalization in Portugal (for all drugs that is) to unbelievable jail sentences in Sweden, but the report was very optimistic about the Portuguese model and suggested to go to that direction. If that happens in large scale in Europe, that'd be really cool, eh?

Also, one idea that came to my mind recently was that as Berlin is very tourist-driven city and the economy is quite dependent on the money the tourists bring in, how about putting up the same model for coffee shops as in the Netherlands and attract even more tourist to the city and fly out of the recession? Has that been in the discussion during the years in Berlin politics? Not only would it bring tourists from abroad, but also from other places in Germany... Just a thought..

hi hank420!

No legalization/decriminalization in the next years in germany. Be sure. Germany is too conservative in these things. Its allowed to own 10 grams weed for personal use in Berlin. If cops catch you first time with it you will get a ticket and usually no more trouble. EU is a very complicated (but for all that still great) thing and needs a lot of time for political processes. Drugs are not the most important thing on the political agenda...

Growing in Berlin is very common. If you really grow for your own, maybe under one lamp a few plants you will never get problems. If though, for bad luck, cop-callers or whatever, you will get a penalty of 500 Euro or so (depents on your income) and that`s it. Be sure, no jail at all...

Hi guys!!

What's the situation in Berlin right now?? (about growing)

Dankee!

Nobody here?

Not really.

I think the situation in Berlin is the same like in London or Paris? Better than in Bavaria or Texas.

Mhm... If cops catch anyone in Berlin with just 2/3 plants and a small grow box what appen? Just a fine? Nothing of penal?

I think you get probation and lose your driver license, but I am not an expert.

Ohw...other ppl told me just a fine!
Thanks a lot, I hope to receive others replies!