Naughty Squirrel Farms is a California cultivation brand founded in Calaveras County in 2015 by owner-operators Scott Balch and Jennifer Smith. The name is the dba for the cultivation companies the two founded, and the operation now runs farm sites in Calaveras and Lake counties, growing in small batches under organic practices.
Scott Balch
Balch is a retired firefighter who farmed wine grapes for fifteen years while also growing cannabis under California's Proposition 215 framework. The company credits his attention to detail for its efficiencies and preparedness, and his background ties the project to traditional specialty agriculture rather than a post-legalization launch.
Jennifer Smith
Smith spent her earlier career in the alcohol-beverage industry, working with brands including Jack Daniel's and Budweiser. She holds a degree in agricultural business and handles compliance and regulation development through political outreach.
Two counties
The brand farms in both Calaveras and Lake counties. The split matters at competition, because the California State Fair classifies entries by cultivation method and growing county, and the farm's 2023 medal was specifically for Lake County-grown flower.
Hospitality
Beyond cultivation the farm runs a hospitality side: an event space, Airbnb accommodation, and farm-to-table dinners built on locally sourced ingredients.
Recognition
At the first California State Fair Cannabis Awards in 2022, Lemon Vuitton took outdoor gold in myrcene and the Best of California Golden Bear for that category. Venom OG took mixed-light gold in limonene.
In 2023, Lake County-grown Dirty Skittles took outdoor silver in caryophyllene.
Lemon Vuitton earned outdoor myrcene gold and the 2022 Best of California Golden Bear for its category. Venom OG earned mixed-light limonene gold in the same year. Dirty Skittles from Lake County received a 2023 outdoor caryophyllene silver. Each medal belongs to a named cultivar, cultivation method, county and competition year; it does not grade every cultivar or later harvest from the farms.
Production
The Calaveras property spans a large agricultural parcel with natural water resources and a vineyard history. The Lake County site became a second operating base and a test plot for comparing cultivation methods. County and method matter because climate, soil, licensing and competition classes differ. Flower from one farm should not automatically be assigned to the other without the harvest and cultivator information on the package.
Naughty Squirrel grows outdoors and in mixed-light greenhouses. Outdoor plants depend on natural seasonal light, while mixed-light structures can combine sunlight with supplemental lighting and environmental control. The farm has also compared organic and salt-based production in side-by-side plots. Those trials show more than one method within the operation, so broad claims about every crop being grown identically would be misleading.
Related California farm and sungrown profiles include Moon Made Farms, Ridgeline Farms, Pacific Stone and Humboldt Farms.
Origins and ownership
Scott Balch brought experience in firefighting, wine grapes and pre-legalization cannabis cultivation. Jennifer Smith brought agricultural-business training, beverage-brand work and a focus on compliance and policy. The Naughty Squirrel name is the doing-business-as identity for cultivation companies owned by the two operators. That structure distinguishes the consumer-facing farm name from the legal entities and licenses attached to a batch.
Where it operates
The business also promotes event space, lodging and farm-to-table dinners. Hospitality and licensed cannabis commerce are separate activities. A lodging reservation does not by itself include cannabis access, a farm tour or a product purchase. Adults seeking the flower should use a licensed California retailer and check the cultivator, county, batch, package date and testing information. Guests should rely on the accommodation terms for event, access and meal details.