Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. This week we look at planting companion plants along with cannabis, using CBD to tackle head trauma in football, why so few cannabis companies are posting profits and more. Enjoy.
Cannabis News and Notes
This year, mature consumers and other residents of Connecticut can celebrate a different kind of Independence Day. They can plant their own cannabis plants.
According to Gaby Molina, reporting for Fox61, as of July 1, 2023, adults 21 and older in Connecticut can grow their own marijuana at home. Each person can grow up to three mature plants, and three immature plants with a maximum of 12 in one household.
There are other rules that Cannecticut’s cannabis cultivators also have to follow. For example, according to Roderick Marriott, director of the Department of Consumer Protection’s drug control division, cannabis plants grown by consumers must be kept indoors, in locked areas, secured from access from anyone other than the consumer or qualifying patient or caregiver.
Said Marriott, “Any time that you’re using cannabis you want to make sure that you keep it out of the reach of children. And obviously, we don’t want people to have their pets ingest it either, it can cause them to be ill as well.”
In addition, Marriott noted that there may be more limitations on growing your own, depending on where you live. For example, individuals who live in federal housing or buildings may be prohibited from growing cannabis. In addition, there may be restrictions in various municipalities that would prevent home growing. Said Marriott, “You have to be aware of some of the regulations within your cities and towns.”
In general, Connecticut has shown itself to be a fertile cannabis market. Recreational marijuana sales in the state hit a record high in May of 2023, with purchases in the adult-use market outpacing those of medical cannabis for the first time since adult-use retailers opened for business in January of 2023.
The Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) recently published the state’s sales data for May, showing about $11.5 million in adult-use marijuana purchases and $11.2 million in medical cannabis for a total of approximately $22.7 million for the month.
To learn more, we suggest you read the reporting by Gaby Molina that appeared on the Fox61 website on June 27, 2023. Simply click on the link that follows.
Garden Tips
If you are a mature cannabis consumer and enjoy growing your own, here’s a tip—don’t forget companion plants.
As most gardeners will tell you, many vegetables prefer to have “companions” nearby. For instance, when planted near tomatoes, basil can help to repel garden pests, such as worms, that are attracted to tomato plants, and—many believe—can actually help to improve the taste of the tomatoes. At the same time, tomato plants, which usually grow taller than basil, can help to protect basil plants from getting too much sun.
In another example of companion planting, many Native Americans would plant the “three sisters”—corn, beans and squash— together. The corn grows first, providing a stalk for the beans, which tend to grow upward along the corn stalk to get sun. The squash plant, which grows low to the ground, gets shade from the beans and corn and keeps weeds from interfering with the other two plants.
Cannabis is another plant that can benefit from having companions around. That’s the word from Cara Wietstock, writing for the online publication GreenState. She says that, like cannabis, companion plants can emit terpenes—the chemicals that give different cannabis strains their unique taste and smell—and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that insects and other natural predators can smell and taste. Some of these terpenes can be off- putting to predators, causing them to avoid the plants in the garden.
Wietstock also cites the work of Ed Rosenthal, a leading cannabis horticulture expert, who recommends planting fragrant plants, such as mint, garlic, onions, and calendula near cannabis to repel pests. Given that mint can spread so easily, he plants it in pots and puts the containers in between the cannabis plants.
Rosenthal also plants hot peppers near cannabis. Said Rosenthal, “The same capsaicin that gives peppers spicy flavor and sensation is released by that {plant’s} roots and will keep ground-dwelling rodents away.”
Chiah Rodriques, co-founder and operations director for Arcanna Flower—a company that specializes in sustainably grown cannabis—is another fan of companion planting. Said Rodriques, “Here at Arcanna Flowers, we have a very diverse garden that’s 23 seasons in. We have many kinds of flowers, herbs, bushes, and fruit trees along with veggies. We do cover cropping {a crop grown for the protection and enrichment of the soil} and interplant veggies and herbs like basil and parsley.”
They must be doing something right. In 2022 their True Ryder OG cannabis strain took home the silver medal in the myrcene terpene category at the California State Fair.
Another way to deter pests is with what’s called a “sacrificial plant,” one that will attract pests away from plants you wish to protect. For example, Wietstock notes that Kenny Ingebrigtson, the farmer behind Eagle Trees, a farm in Washington state, plants potatoes near his cannabis plants to attract wireworms.
Said Ingebrightson, “I plant potatoes with my cannabis since wireworms, who like untilled soil with high organic matter, tend to attack cannabis plants when they’re babies. If you throw potatoes out with them, they’ll eat the potatoes instead. Even still, the potatoes grow well, usually.”
Rosenthal practices a similar deception, planting collard greens to keep aphids away from his cannabis plants.
To learn much more, we urge you to read Cara Wietstock’s engaging and entertaining article in the June 16, 2023 issue of GreenState.com.
www.greenstate.com/lifestyle/cannabis-companion-planting/
CBD and Sports
Another professional sports league has stepped up to fund research on the potential benefits of CBD as a treatment option for its players, particularly those with concussions.
That’s the word from Kyle Jaeger, reporting for Marijuana Moment. According to Jaeger, the National Football League (NFL) and its players union are funding independent research on the therapeutic benefits of CBD as a pain treatment alternative to opioids for players with concussions.
Specifically, the NFL and the NFL Players Association have committed a total of $526,525 to support two studies—one of which will be led by the American Society of Pain and Neuroscience (ASPN)—to explore cannabidiol and non-invasive vagal nerve stimulation (nVNS) as alternative treatments for post-concussion headache pain.
Said a spokesperson for ASPN in a description of the research project, “New treatment avenues such as cannabinoids and non-drug options such as [nVNS] have shown promise as a potential alternative to opioid-based treatments in their effects on the inflammatory responses to concussion.”
In its statement ASPN added, “This randomized study—first-of-its-kind research—will compare nVNS and cannabidiol (CBD) in contact sport athletes experiencing PTH to current standard of care treatment. The pilot data gathered in this study will guide future investigations into treatment of patients with post-traumatic headache.”
The International Headache Society defines post-traumatic headache (PTH) as a headache that “developed within seven days of trauma or injury.” According to the American Migraine Foundation, PTH is a side effect of a traumatic brain injury (TBI), which can be caused by a number of things, including motor-vehicle accidents, assault, a sports collision, falling, or accidentally hitting your head. The headache itself could be caused by inflammation, activation of the trigeminal nerve (main pain nerve in the head), or injury to the neck.
Said NFL Chief Medical Officer Allen Sills, “We {the NFL and the union} are always seeking new knowledge, techniques, and tools to ensure that NFL athletes are treated with the best possible care. We are proud to lead the way on investigating how the use of CBD and other alternative measures could positively impact pain management for players. As within the broader scope of player health and safety, we want to ensure every treatment at our disposal clears the appropriate medical standard for wider use.”
Said Kevin Hill, co-chair of the NFL-NFLPA Pain Management Committee, it’s “our hope that these studies will help the players manage the pain that may be a part of professional football.”
In his article, Jaeger makes the point that the NFL and the NFL Players Association have spent the last few years promoting research into the benefits and risks of cannabinoids, such as CBD. Last year, the league authorized $1 million in grants for a pair of studies looking into the efficacy of marijuana and its components in managing football players’ pain and providing neuroprotection from concussions.
To learn more, we encourage you to read Kyle Jaeger’s article in the June 22, 2023 issue of Marijuana Moment.net. As always, his reporting is clear, concise and on point.
Investment News and Notes
While it may be getting easier to purchase cannabis legally, finding a profitable cannabis company to invest in can still be a challenge.
According to TG Branfalt, writing for the online publication Ganjapreneur, a recent report by Whitney Economics found that just 24.4 percent of U.S. cannabis companies currently turn a profit. That’s down 42 percent from the previous year.
The findings are taken from the Whitney Economics Q4’22 Cannabis Operator Sentiment & Business Conditions Survey Report.
The survey found that among the impediments to profit reported by cannabis operators are taxes, strict regulatory rules, and lack of access to capital.
Branfalt noted that the report suggests that “cannabis legislative and regulatory policies have remained static, focused more on tax generation than on creating a viable, business friendly environment.”
Said the editors at Whitney Economics, “Markets and business conditions have changed, while regulatory policies have not.”
To learn more, we suggest reading the article by TG Branfalt that appears in the June 26, 2023 issue of Ganjapreneur.com.
www.ganjapreneur.com/report-just-24-4-of-cannabis-businesses-are-profitable/?
The complete report—Whitney Economics Q4’22 Cannabis Operator Sentiment & Business Conditions Survey Report—can be downloaded at whitneyeconomics.com/reports.
Spotlight on Medical Marijuana
Critics who contend that legalizing even medical marijuana will somehow entice teens to use cannabis may have to rethink their position.
A team of researchers affiliated with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign analyzed if living in a ZIP code with a dispensary (ZCWD) was associated with adolescent cannabis use.
The research team matched dispensary ZIP codes from public records against self-reported ZIP codes on the Illinois Youth Survey (IYS). They then compared self reported cannabis use over the past 30-days and the past year among youth living in a zip code with a dispensary and those not living in a zip code with a dispensary.
Overall, what they found was that drug use over the past 30 days was lower among youth who lived in ZIP codes with dispensaries and that cannabis use was significantly lower among 10th and 12th graders living in a zip code with a dispensary.
The study, “Adolescent Cannabis Use Among Youth in ZIP Codes with Medical Dispensaries,” was published in the journal Cannabis. To read an abstract of the study, simply click on the link that follows.
publications.sciences.ucf.edu/cannabis/index.php/Cannabis/article/view/124
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com and at 347-528-8753.
