North Dakota’s First Medical Marijuana Dispensary Opens

Over a dozen people lined up to learn about how The Botanist's products could help their needs

FARGO, N.D. — North Dakota’s first medical marijuana dispensary opened its doors Friday morning in Fargo.

When Justyce Dahl found out a medical marijuana dispensary was opening in Fargo, he drove six hours from Williston to learn about how it could help his chronic pain.

“I broke my back in a car accident. I have quite extensive nerve damage in my legs and it would be nice to have an alternative source for the pain and to not have to take any opiates,” Dahl said.

Dahl was one of the first people to walk through The Botanist and learn how products like dry leaves, vaporizers, and a cannabis concentrate called Shatter can help their medical needs.

Some waited for more than 40 minutes to get inside, only to find The Botanist’s current offerings only help one group of patients.

“For people who don’t smoke, it’s not a very good menu right now, but they’ll add things and make it better I’m sure,” said Ray Morgan of Fargo.

“Waiting over two years is ridiculous that something can’t be up and going. Hopefully in the future here there will be something that will be here that I can use,” Lanei Groshong, who deals with chronic arthritis, said.

For patients like Marcus Schumacher, who lives with cystic fibrosis, the wait was worth it.

“I’m actually feeling really relieved in all honesty. There’s proven medicinal uses but it still felt like you’re always a criminal for using it, and now I’m just a patient. I won’t feel like a criminal,” Schumacher said.

With only 130 patients in the state certified to take medical marijuana, some say having the dispensary open makes a big difference.

“I think that we’ll definitely see more doctors recommending and certifying patients,” Morgan said.

The Botanist plans to introduce creams, capsules, and transdermal patches into the store over the next few months.