Marijuana Is A Gateway Drug To…Growing Tomatoes, Poll Suggests

Opponents of marijuana legalization often suggest—without good evidence—that cannabis is a “gateway drug” to using more dangerous substances such as cocaine and heroin. But a new poll suggests that growing marijuana at home is a “gateway crop” to other kinds of gardening.

The new survey of 1,327 home cannabis cultivators found that two-thirds (66 percent) say growing their own marijuana inspired them to start growing tomatoes in their backyard gardens as well.

Almost a fourth of respondents in the poll said they never grew tomatoes until years after cultivating their first cannabis plant.

“We’ve been saying it for years, once people experience the joy of growing their own cannabis, they can’t stop,” Jessica Hanson, co-founder and managing director of Homegrown Cannabis Co., which conducted the new survey, said in a press release. “Cannabis isn’t a gateway drug, it’s a gateway crop. Before you know it, you’ve got a backyard full of tomatoes, and maybe even a few zucchinis.”

The poll showed that following tomatoes, the top crops people were inspired to grow after cultivating cannabis were basil, strawberries, chili peppers, cucumbers and lettuce.

It also identified what the company called a “generational shift” in gardening culture.

While just 29 percent of baby boomers said they cultivated marijuana before growing tomatoes, 62 percent of millennials said the same. Homegrown Cannabis Co. said that trend was most prevalent in state that have enacted cannabis legalization laws, but it was also common in jurisdictions that have maintained prohibition—requiring people who grow marijuana to do so “discreetly.”

“Cannabis teaches patience, attention to detail, and care, the same skills you need to grow healthy tomatoes,” Hanson said. “Plus, they pair perfectly in the garden. One for your salad, one for your soul.”

Not only does it build skills, but gardening also comes with the health benefits of staying active. And to that point, a federally funded study released earlier this year found that adults are more physically active on days they used marijuana—evidence that contradicts the “lazy stoner” stereotype.

Another report from last year found that people who use marijuana take more walks on average compared to non-users and e-cigarette users. The study, published in the journal Preventive Medicine Reports, also found that marijuana consumers are no less likely to engage in basic exercise and strength training compared to non-users.

In another stereotype-busting study that was published in 2021, researchers found that frequent marijuana consumers are actually more likely to be physically active compared to their non-using counterparts.

Various other recent findings similarly challenge widely held preconceptions about cannabis users. For example, a report last year concluded that there’s no association between habitual marijuana use and paranoia or decreased motivation. The research also found no evidence that marijuana consumption causes a hangover the next day.

A 2022 study on marijuana and laziness, meanwhile, found no difference in apathy or reward-based behavior between people who used cannabis on at least a weekly basis and non-users. Frequent marijuana consumers, that study found, actually experienced more pleasure than those who abstained.

Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.