Grower Stories #96: Jason Levin

Homegrown From Seed to Sprout: An Interview With Jason of Cannabis Growing Kit Brand a Pot for Pot

There’s nothing like growing and producing your very own cannabis plants. But home growing can be hard. Getting the right equipment, seeds, and soil can be a real challenge, especially for first-time growers. That’s why AskGrowers sat down with Jason, co-founder of specialty cannabis growing kit A Pot for Pot, about the origins of the brand, their advice for first-time growers, and the future of the legal cannabis industry. #growerstories

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I and my co-founder Joshua have been working in the cannabis industry for over 10 years. We both previously worked on ancillary cannabis consumer electronics products. Joshua designed a pair of electronic trimming scissors, and I designed a portable e-cigar vaporizer with a built-in grinder and instantaneous heating. We’ve always had a passion for consumer products and education, and that led us to start a Pot for Pot to bring the joy of growing to the home.

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Tia (AskGrowers) : How did you start a Pot For Pot? Tell us your origin story!

Jason Levin : We started a Pot for Pot because we wanted to empower people to grow their own medicine. For so many people, that is a big step to taking back control of their health. We also wanted to teach people how simple and easy it can be to grow quality bud on your windowsill, balcony, or in your home garden. Getting high doesn’t have to be expensive, and it’s rewarding to grow it yourself and know exactly what went into your weed.

Joshua and I were walking through Home Depot, and we saw all the home herb kits available, and thought, “Someone ought to do that for cannabis.” A kit for weed, hemp, and CBD would be so popular, how has no one created that yet? We did some research, and nobody had done it simply and affordably. Since California and several other states were coming online for adult use home cultivation, we decided the time was right and started a Pot for Pot. Now we supply home grow kits globally and our customers have grown over a metric ton of sticky, delicious homegrown weed.

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Tia : As a brand that shares the growing techniques, can you tell us about your first growing experience, and what strains you started out with?

Jason : When we developed the kit our goal was to make it easy and affordable to grow cannabis. Joshua started growing auto-flowering cannabis in college at UC Santa Cruz in his dorm room. This led him to transition into growing commercially for the medical industry in 2009. He has grown hydroponically, aeroponically, indoors, outside, and greenhouse. For a Pot for Pot, we wanted the customer's experience to be as simple as adding water. So we blend our own custom super soil recipe which provides the plant with everything it needs from seed to harvest naturally without requiring added fertilizers.

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Tia : When it comes to the growing kits, what’s the most popular from your list of products? Which one would you recommend to the first-timers out there?

Jason : Our most popular grow kit is a Pot for Pot Medium Complete 5 Gallon Kit. For first-time growers, I recommend the Small or Medium size kits, depending on how much space is available. Though, the Mini Half Gallon Kit is a popular gift or desktop companion for someone to try their hand at growing without a big commitment. And when you factor in the included $40 seed coupon, the mini kit is free.

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Tia : Where should the customer keep their plant to make it happy? Any tips and tricks on that?

Jason : When growing weed, it depends on your local climate. We designed a Pot for Pot to be grown with the sun. No grow tent is needed because we push our customers to grow auto-flowering cannabis or full-term plants. If you live in a location with limited sun we suggest putting a 75 watt grow light over your plant to supplement the sun. But typically the happiest plants our customers grow spend the day in the sun and the nights indoors under a grow light.

After harvest, it’s best to keep your weed in a sealed mason jar in a cool, dark, dry place. Open the jar every five to ten days to cycle the air for the first few months to let the weed cure.

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Tia : What’s your personal consumption routine? What are the top three products that you’re using?

Jason : I personally like to vape flowers. I’ve got a Volcano at home and at the office. Joshua is all about joints. He can roll them with one hand. So when we’re together, we’re usually burning one down.

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Tia : Your top strains to smoke? Why?

Jason :

1. Red Congolese. It’s like Adderall in weed form. A strong, pure Sativa that tests 29-32 percent THC, it’s speedy and racy and great for focus and creativity, whether crunching spreadsheets or answering interview questions.
2. Red Congolese….again. It bears repeating.
3. Blue Dream - An oldie but a goodie. It’s a great Sativa dominant hybrid that relaxes but invigorates, finding a balance between pain relief and stimulating creativity.

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Tia : If you could smoke with anyone in the world, dead or alive, who would that be and why?

Jason : [tooltip title="Benjamin Franklin" content="One of the Founding Fathers of the US and 6th President of Pennsylvania."]Benjamin Franklin[/tooltip]. He’s one of the most interesting figures in history. A founding father, scientist, statesman, publisher, diplomat, and inventor, he was a true polymath. I’d love to discuss the internet, AI, and cryptocurrency with him. Plus he was supposed to be quite the partier. I’d take him to Burning Man if I could.

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Tia : Are there any cannabis brands in your state (or in the USA) you appreciate and follow? Name them.

Jason :

• Grupo Flor
• Gold Seal Farms
• Victory Pharms
• Vertosa

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Tia : What’s your prediction on the cannabis industry for the next five to ten years?

Jason : I predict federal decriminalization and banking reform in 2021, followed by another explosion of growth and multi-state consolidation. Lots of IPOs and the maturing of a market 30 years in the making.

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Tia : What is your best advice for people who want to start growing cannabis?

Jason : Don’t worry about getting everything right the first time. Start simple with an all-natural complete soil grow kit. Use auto flower seeds to minimize risk and finish in only 2 months so that you can get more harvests under your belt and improve faster. And don’t be afraid to ask for help. We provide ongoing grow coaching with every a Pot for Pot Grow Kit, just email us for personalized coaching from seed to harvest.

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You can follow a Pot For Pot at:

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Thank you so much, a Pot For Pot team, for taking the time to do the interview. To learn more about them, head on over to their website.