Lee Simon Bourke was arrested after police uncovered an alleged covert drug operation at Terramungamine.

He had previously been refused bail by Dubbo Local Court Magistrate Andrew Eckhold.

Bourke, 34, of Dubbo, has pleaded not guilty to charges of cultivating a commercial quantity of a prohibited plant, cultivating cannabis, knowingly allowing use as drug premises, dealing with property suspected to be the proceeds of crime and dealing with property intended to be an instrument of crime.

Bourke asked for a lengthy adjournment when he represented himself in local court this week. The charges were put over to July 30.

Prosecution facts tendered to the court said Bourke had an extensive criminal history with 212 previous charges ranging from assault and fraud to drug supply.

The court heard Bourke was taken into custody after a police executed a search warrant at a 10-hectare property 17km north-west of Dubbo.

A search of a four-bedroom house revealed 81 small cannabis seedlings growing in terrarium enhanced by artificial light and heat.

A glass-fronted commercial refrigerator was allegedly used to dry cannabis.

Police found 197 cannabis plants, ranging from 5cm to 100cm in height, growing in pots in cattle yards.

A large generator valued at $28,000 was located between the cattle yards and a machinery shed. Police said the generator had been hired from a company on July 23, 2011 and never returned.

Long extension power leads linked the generator to the machinery shed. When police forced entry they found two large indoor rooms constructed from plywood panels and sheets of metal.

The rooms were covered in black plastic. One room contained 46 pots and 25 cannabis plants under hydroponic lights.

The second room had eight hydroponic lights attached to the roof. There was evidence of water and soil marks on a shelf.

Police located cannabis leaf trimmings, a pair of orange handled scissors, cigarette butts and two fold-out chairs.

Prosecution facts said forensic testing of the cigarette butts, scissors and extension cord plug matched a DNA profile. A total of 303 cannabis plants were seized.

The owner of the property told police he did not know anything about the cannabis cultivation.

The owner said he believed his cousin and a friend were growing hydroponic vegetables in the shed.