DNA Gardens was started by two friends who have known each other for over twenty years. Dan Bechen and Adrian Galaviz started growing weed together in 2005 in Washington’s medical industry. One of the medical dispensary owners told Bechen and Galaviz that their weed was “some of the best in our store. You’d be a fool not to get your [recreational] license.”
After some thought, Bechen decided to put in for a license so he and Galaviz could continue growing cannabis together and join Washington’s green rush. During this time Bechen was building a business plan for a restaurant, but it didn’t look like it would become reality. He pivoted his restaurant plan into a cannabis business plan. Acquiring the license went off without a hitch and DNA Gardens entered the legal market in 2015.
“I had everything prepared,” Bechen said with a calm resolve.
DNA stands for Dan N Adrian. DNA isn’t just a clever abbreviation, it has meanings rooted in the spiritual and medical nature of the cannabis plant, represented by three words – “respect the cure.” DNA respects the art, science, craft, and time that goes into creating cannabis truly worthy of a spot on the top shelf. This starts with DNA’s homemade super-soil mix. They’ve mixed their soil in the same ratios for the last eight years. DNA’s plants get a mixed light spectrum throughout their lifespan. The different light spectrums bring out each phenotype’s specific genes, giving each flower a distinct appearance.
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“We truly believe in the blues,” Bechen said.
Each strain stays in the ground anywhere from seven to nine weeks. These time periods are dialed in to allow each strain the time it needs to develop properly. Once harvested, each bud is studied and trimmed for physical appearance. Just as you might give different strains different harvest dates, different strains require different haircuts to make them appeal to the eye. All of these factors equate to a weed smoking experience that spreads via word of mouth to create long-lasting customers.
DNA Gardens has a loud strain menu featuring the likes of Orange Widow, Candy Kush, Purple Monkey, and The Cake. Orange Widow has been in Bechen’s possession for years and knew it was going to be a winner from the first time he smelt it at some Portland old timer’s cannabis farm. Orange Widow is a cross between Snow White and Orange Kush. This indica-hybrid was so terpy that Local Roots helped collaborate with DNA and GreenRush to create an Orange Widow live resin.
Purple Monkey is a strain that was created in-house… completely by accident. One season, their facility suffered major power outages which completely threw the environment off kilter. This caused a batch of Double Purple to seed out and infect neighboring Gorilla Glue plants. DNA ended up saving some seeds from the accident and planting them. It took a year to stabilize the plant, but the work paid off when the Purple Monkey cannabis strain was born – a heavy indica strain reeking of grapes and fruit punch.
Respect the cure doesn’t only refer to the medicinal nature of cannabis, but to the curing process itself. Bechen believes curing can make the difference between mids and true fire. Curing is another word for drying freshly harvested cannabis.
DNA Gardens wants to put the same effort into their business relationships as they do their cannabis. They want to survive off word of mouth and true relationships, not inflated marketing budgets and backdoor deals.
“We’re trying to build a bigger family,” Bechen said.
DNA Gardens is excited for several product drops in the near future; their Candy Kush, Durban Poison landrace strain, a Blueberry Diamonds collaboration with Amber Brick, and two different phenotypes of The Cake, DNA’s Wedding Cake cut. They have a forum cut, and one that’s similar to Cherry Pie, Bechen said.
“People say they don’t see sticky weed anymore…..It’s coming.”
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*Updated 10/20 4:56 PM – Dan Bechen’s name was misspelled as Dan Dechen; all instances of such are fixed.*
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