Pleasant Plant Farms

Family-Run Medical Marijuana Growing Business

As of July 29, the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority has issued 162,273 patient licenses for the use of medicinal cannabis. Because marijuana cannot be transported across state lines, all of the cannabis these patients consume must be grown within the state. According to the OMMA, there are currently 3,733 licensed grow facilities within the state, and 51 of them are located in the Ardmore area.
Pleasant Plant Farms is one of those local growers, and brothers Howie and Tim McReynolds own and operate the 1,800-square-foot facility along with other family members. The business opened in September 2018, and they are currently building a new 7,200-square-foot structure so they can produce more product to meet with growing demand. Tim said they typically sell their entire crop before it’s even harvested.
“We can’t keep up with demand,” Tim said. “We have dispensaries calling us all the time asking if we have any flower available, but we sell out before our harvest.“
Howie said while they do have one large customer in the Oklahoma City area, most of their product stays in Southern Oklahoma. Their cannabis can be found at dispensaries in Ardmore, Lone Grove, Davis and Tishomingo. He said working with the dispensaries is one of his favorite parts of the business.
“You make friends with them, and it’s just a really laid back business transaction,” Howie said. “Everybody is always happy in this business.”
“As long as you provide them with a good product,” Tim chimed in.
They currently grow 12 different strains of marijuana, and Tim said while some plants grow like weeds others can be temperamental.
“There are some that grow huge and don’t have any problems with anything. Then there are some that you have to watch carefully,” Tim said. He said this is particularly true when cloning plants — growing a new plant from a cutting of the parent plant. “Every strain grows differently. Some clones die more easily and some will take better.“
He went on to explain why they choose to grow from a clone instead of starting from seed.
“If you start from seeds, every seed has its own genetics — just like a person,” Tim said. “So If you have a plant that’s doing well and has the traits that you like, then you want to preserve those genetics and you clone from that one.“
Tim said growing medical marijuana can be difficult, time consuming work. The plants must be tended to daily and there is no such thing as a weekend off.
“Most days are about eight hours but some can be 12 to 14,” Tim said. “On Saturday and Sunday we’ll try to only come in for a couple of hours a day if we can to water and maintain. Then during the rest of the week we do the bulk of the work.“
Tim said while running the facility has been more difficult and time consuming than he had originally anticipated, he enjoys his job — especially when he hears how their plants have helped others.
“We hear through social media all the time how it’s helping people,” Tim said. “That’s the most rewarding part of everything.”