Garden Supply Sales Down After Med Marijuana Crackdown

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Photo: KULR 8
David Dayton, Heightened Harvests: “A lot of it is related to what’s happening with the news lately”

​Montana’s medical marijuana system is set to begin a new, extremely restrictive phase, and cultivators and dispensaries aren’t the only businesses affected by the crackdown.

Owners at Heightened Harvests said they’ve seen a drop in demand for indoor growing equipment since Senate Bill 423 passed, reports Kyle Midura at KULR 8. The store specializes in indoor gardening supplies.
Store owner David Dayton said hardware sales, especially of grow lights, are down. “Indoor gardening typically is a big slower in the summer and it usually picks up in the fall, but a lot of it is related to what’s happening with the laws lately,” Dayton said.

Staff at Gainan’s Flowers and Garden Center said they saw a boom in sales three years ago, which they attribute to medical marijuana. However, they said sales quickly normalized and they haven’t noticed any changes recently.
Medical marijuana growers provided a boost for his business, according to Dayton. He said he hasn’t seen increased interest from patients as Montana moves toward a grow-your-own system — possibly because under Montana’s new rules, patients are required to be so seriously ill they would, in many cases, be physically in capable of gardening.
Many commercial caregivers have said they’ll sell off their growing equipment if challenges to Montana’s new restrictive medical marijuana law are unsuccessful. Some said they may host classes to teach cardholders how to grow their own cannabis.

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