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Oh , The Places Tyler Went to Find … Olivia & Grow Depot
At a young 18 , Tyler moved from Missouri to a small mountain town in Colorado where it all changed .
Part 2 by Clayton Stallings , The EVOLUTION Magazine
February is the perfect month to tell
the second half of Grow Depot ’ s creation in Columbia , MO , and the resilient love that led to its birth through owners Olivia and Tyler . Last month ’ s issue included a glimpse of Olivia ’ s challenging story about chasing her passion for cultivating cannabis . Part two of this story leads us to Tyler ’ s rocky road and , ultimately , transcending into a cultivating guru . Like Olivia ’ s past , Tyler ’ s didn ’ t come without difficult challenges , personal sacrifices , and run-ins with the law .
“ I had ADHD as a kid , and my parents started me out on Adderall ,” said Tyler . “ As I grew older , I hated the side effects of using pharmaceuticals , so when I was 15-16 , I began self-medicating with cannabis in place of traditional medication to get me through school .”
It wasn ’ t long before Tyler ’ s parents discovered his alternative medication — they kicked him out of the house . At a very young age , and with only $ 260 to his name and a pickup truck to live out of , he made the difficult decision to chase his cannabis passion . It started with many months of living out of his truck , but with time and resilience , he managed to afford an apartment , finish high school , and even started college . After a few close calls with the law , Tyler decided to move to Colorado and get involved in its “ legal ” cannabis industry .
“ I started out just trying to medicate myself , ended up doing it to survive , and didn ’ t want it to finally end in a life of crime ,” Tyler said . “ I only wanted an alternative to those harsh prescriptions because of how badly I struggled with ADHD in school . Before legality , everyone was considered a criminal just for being on the wrong side of a state line .”
At a young 18 , Tyler moved to a small mountain town in Colorado where a buddy hooked him up with cheap rent . He got his MMJ patient card and began growing the legal amount of 18 plants while also looking for a larger space to try his hand at outdoor growing .
Tyler ( on right ) in part of the huge Grow Depot warehouse with Advanced Nutrient Rep Andrew Richards .
“ Outdoor was always what I wanted to focus on — growing massive plants under the sun ,” explained Tyler . “ I finally found a place in Pueblo that had a huge backyard and a big basement . I moved there , got my caregiver ’ s license with several patients , each equaling the legal 99 plant count , so I was able to run a big operation . I operated outdoors my first year there , growing several 2 – 3-pound plants
[ first outdoor grow ], which was difficult since I was trying to keep the plants below the fence line . All the while running a 20-plus light indoor grow in my basement .”
Tyler was gaining a lot of legal cultivation experience while helping local patients in the process . However , it wasn ’ t long before the local county started having second thoughts about their new cannabis laws . They began legislation to lessen the plant count and had an already unhappy law enforcement about the new laws eager to enforce any newly given authority .
“ I knew I had to move to a different county to continue ,” Tyler reflected . “ I was tired of dealing with those grey areas . Even in Pueblo , the local police were always harassing me . Countless times they would just sit outside my house waiting to do ‘ knock n talks ,’ which would lead to them wanting to inspect my grow to make sure it ‘ was up to code .’ I finally had enough . I found a property for sale in Southern Colorado , bought it , and began growing Hemp .”
With no running water , no driveway , and no electricity , Tyler ’ s first step was clearing for a driveway . That ’ s right — zero infrastructure . His brother joined him to help . The only thing separating the two of them from the Colorado mountain blizzards was the hard-shell top of the back of his pickup truck . Two brothers , three dogs , and a generator running a heater . Every night ’ s meal was SpaghettiOs or canned variations . By then , Tyler was a pro at living out of a vehicle . The first winter was tough , but summer help was on the way .
30 February 2021