Grow Your Own

Legalized recreational marijuana in New York State was enacted in 2021. However, medical marijuana use has been legal for some time, although strictly regulated. With the passage of the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act this year, the promise to loosen eligibility requirements for medical marijuana as well as expanding the supply,was fulfilled.

The Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) describes the conditions for which patients may qualify to use medical cannabis: “Cancer, HIV/AIDS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity, epilepsy, inflammatory bowel disease, neuropathies, Huntington’s disease, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), pain that degrades health and functional capability where the use of medical cannabis is an alternative to opioid use, substance use disorder, Alzheimer’s, muscular dystrophy, dystonia, rheumatoid arthritis, autism or any other condition certified by the practitioner.” (Emphasis added)

Consumption: Use of whole flower, including smoking, is now approved

Home cultivation: Certified medical marijuana patients 21 years of age or older, or their certified caregivers, will be able to cultivate cannabis for use at home.

The OCM has proposed allowing each individual/caregiver to cultivate 6 cannabis plants ( 3 mature/3 immature), and a household to grow up to 12 plants (6 mature/6 immature). Plants must be in a locked enclosure, not plainly visible, and security “devices” are to be in place.

The MRTA has already allowed cultivation of 3 plants per individual and 6 plants per household for recreational use, but that practice will not be legally allowable until 18 months after retail dispensaries are receiving license—which will be sometime in 2023.

For a sense of what backyard cultivation of 6-12 plants in your neighborhood may look like, see the picture form Oregon leading this post.

—Patrick Crouse