Listen to this article

The basics:

• Most New Jersey cannabis is grown indoors despite Croptober‘s outdoor origins
• Curaleaf and Ascend emphasize year-round harvests through controlled environments
• Only three fully outdoor cultivation sites operate across New Jersey
• Cannabis prices are falling as the state’s $1B market matures and competition grows

Even though most legal cannabis in New Jersey is grown indoors year-round, the industry still likes to celebrate Croptober as a way to pay homage to the plant’s traditionally outdoors harvest culture in more established markets, like California and Oregon.

Like other crops, outdoor cannabis is planted in spring, flowers in late summer and ready for gathering before the first frost. For the cannabis space, Croptober began as a grassroots movement each October among small-scale growers who wanted to celebrate the end of a growing season and fruits of their labor. Over the years, it has evolved into a larger celebration, uniting growers, enthusiasts, and advocates to honor the plant and its cultural significance, as well as educate the public about the practice of cultivation.

Prompted by a mix of economics, regulation, weather risks and market demand for high-quality, consistent flower, cannabis cultivation in the U.S. increasingly occurs indoors or in greenhouses. As of 2024, indoor cultivation held a 54.8% share of revenue in the U.S. legalized cannabis industry, according to market research firm Grand View Research.

However, Croptober remains a noteworthy period for the industry as a cultural and marketing effort – though it’s not as popular as other holidays, such as 4/20 and Green Wednesday. Just a few of the ways the season is marked: special events; sales promotions; product drops and strain releases with earthy, sweet or spicy terpene profiles.

For instance, Canna Remedies in Ewing is selling fan favorite Apple Fritter, Pumpkin Pie and Gelato varieties that bring dessert-like notes to match the vibe of the season.

Pure Blossom is offering an Oct. 25 artist-led workshop during which attendees learn how to make a hands-on, functional bong out of a pumpkin. Other seasonal happenings at the Pennington dispensary include scary movie nights, guided mushroom hikes and a harvest market day.

In control

In New Jersey, Curaleaf grows exclusively indoors to supply its dispensaries in Edgewater Park, Bordentown and Bellmawr, as well as wholesale buyers, according to Senior Operations Director Dennis Johnston.

The world’s largest publicly traded cannabis company previously had two grow facilities in South Jersey – Bellmawr and Winslow. But in 2023, the company closed Bellmawr as part of an effort to streamline business in response to market conditions across some of its operating territories, consolidating at its site in Winslow.

At the 100,000-square-foot plant along Route 73, Johnston said, “We have many flower rooms in our facility, and each can be harvested about five times a year. Because we can control all key factors, like climate and lighting, we essentially experience multiple ‘mini-Croptobers’ throughout the year. That consistency allows us to deliver high-quality flower at scale with the same standards our customers expect, regardless of season.”

“A successful harvest cycle ensures a healthy supply chain and steady inventory across New Jersey, so consumers can reliably access the products they want … These rotating harvests guarantee that consumers have year-round access to their preferred products across our portfolio,” he explained.

According to Johnston, workers harvest a different flower room “nearly every week,” which ensures “access to fresh products and gives us the flexibility to quickly pivot based on demand.”

He went on to describe the facility as “a finely tuned indoor environment where all major variables are carefully managed. This includes temperature, humidity, lighting, airflow, ventilation, nutrients, and CO₂. This precision keeps every crop growing under the same optimal conditions, helping us deliver consistent harvests and a reliable, high-quality product that patients and consumers can count on every time,” he said, adding, “We combine traditional cultivation techniques with modern technology to guide plant growth and optimize each harvest.”

Efficiency and quality

Already a leading facility for its advanced curing and drying standards, the site has undergone additional upgrades over the past year-and-a-half aimed at enhancing both efficiency and product quality, according to Johnston.

That includes upgrading all LED lighting to better mimic natural sunlight; improving the irrigation system for precise, hourly nutrient dosing; and expanding HVAC capacity to support higher yields while maintaining an optimal growing environment, he said.

“Consistency comes from aligning Curaleaf’s national cultivation standards with our state-of-the-art facility design. Each plant in every room receives the same careful attention, creating a controlled environment where variables are minimized. This approach allows us to deliver repeatable high-quality flower and pre-rolls harvest after harvest, giving consumers and patients a reliable and predictable experience every time,” Johnston explained.

Both Curaleaf and Ascend Wellness Holdings declined to specify how much cannabis their sites produce annually. However, AWH noted that it sells about 145,000 wholesale pounds each year across its seven-state market.

From seed to sale

Kevin Rampelberg, senior vice president of cultivation at AWH, described Croptober as “largely irrelevant” for indoor cultivators. “Unlike outdoor grows that rely on natural photoperiods and must harvest in the fall, indoor operations run continuous cycles year-round. Controlled climates, automated irrigation and precise lighting schedules replace seasonal sunlight, allowing harvests to be staggered and planned with consistency. Because indoor environments eliminate external variables such as rain, frost or wide humidity swings, product quality is far more uniform across cycles — with tighter control over cannabinoid content, terpene expression and overall plant health,” he said.

In New Jersey, the multistate operator runs a Franklin-based cultivation and processing facility that sells flower, pre-rolls, concentrates, vapes, edibles and tablets to its three local retail stores (Wharton, Rochelle Park, Fort Lee) and third-party wholesale customers.

The Munsonhurst Road site was acquired in January 2022 by cannabis-focused real estate company Innovative Industrial Properties and then leased to AWH. As part of a sale leaseback agreement, AWH upgraded the site to include a lab, kitchen and an additional 22,000 square feet of canopy for a grand total of 42,000 square feet of canopy. In exchange, IIP agreed to a tenant improvement agreement of $4.6 million to fund expansion of the facility.

As a result of the upgrades, the TIA has subsequently increased to $19.6 million, AWH recently reported in its 2024 annual report.

High standards

Rampelberg said the facility’s “stage-specific design” allows the company “to maintain precise environmental control throughout the plant’s life cycle, supporting healthy growth and consistent quality across every harvest.”

“Our approach to consistency starts with standardization at every level of the cultivation process. Each harvest follows tightly defined SOPs [standard operating procedures] that cover propagation, irrigation strategy, canopy management, and post-harvest handling, ensuring that every step is executed the same way cycle after cycle,” he continued. “We also integrate continuous data collection and benchmarking, comparing crop performance against established baselines to identify even minor deviations early. Regular calibration of equipment and preventative maintenance further reduce variability, while staff training ensures uniform execution across shifts and teams. By combining standardized processes with real-time performance feedback, we’re able to deliver harvests that meet the same quality, potency and yield targets throughout the year.”

According to Rampelberg, all grow rooms are “purpose-built for their specific stage of production — whether propagation, vegetative growth or flowering.”

“Each space is engineered with equipment sized and calibrated to match its exact design parameters, including room volume, plant count, transpiration rates and irrigation needs. Climate control systems are tailored to meet stage-specific temperature and humidity targets, while advanced air purification and circulation strategies maintain optimal airflow and minimize pathogen risk,” he said.

Fine-tuning strategies

Additionally, AWH relies on advanced automation and control platforms “to ensure each harvest cycle is executed with precision and repeatability,” Rampelberg said.

“These systems manage critical variables including fertigation, lighting schedules, light intensity, temperature, humidity, and CO₂ levels. They also provide robust historical data and trend analysis, allowing us to refine our cultivation strategies over time and make data-driven decisions. In addition, we deploy substrate sensors throughout our rooms to monitor real-time root-zone conditions such as volumetric water content, electrical conductivity (EC), and pH,” he said.

From there, AWH can use the insight to fine-tune irrigation strategies, optimize nutrient intake and maintain consistent plant health across all cycles, according to Rampelberg.

One of the most impactful recent upgrades included improved environmental controls that allow for precise regulation of temperature, humidity and airflow throughout the drying process, he said. That has enabled AWH to preserve product quality after harvest by reducing terpene loss, preventing microbial growth and achieving a more uniform moisture content across batches, he said.

“A successful harvest cycle directly impacts how products are positioned in the New Jersey market,” Rampelberg went on to say. “Product quality is the key determinant — flower that meets the highest standards for potency, aroma and appearance is allocated to premium brands, ensuring it reaches consumers who value top-tier products. This quality-based sorting influences both pricing and availability, as premium-grade products command higher price points and limited supply, while broader categories maintain steady availability at more accessible prices. By consistently producing high-quality harvests, we’re able to support a balanced brand portfolio that meets diverse consumer expectations.”

Lowering costs

However, as the legalized industry matures and profit margins tighten, more growers are considering outdoor cultivation because it typically means lower operating costs for electricity, HVAC and labor. Sustainability concerns are also pushing some to shift from energy-intensive indoor grows to eco-friendly outdoor or greenhouse models.

Additionally, advances in techniques have improved the quality of outdoor-grown cannabis, making it more competitive in the market.

Despite the increased interest, indoor growing continues to bring in more revenue – likely due to its year-round production and higher level of quality control and consistency. Still, some cultivators are opting for hybrid models that combine greenhouses and seasonal outdoor growing as a way to balance quality, cost and flexibility.

Under New Jersey law, a licensed Class 1 Cannabis Cultivator can grow indoors or outdoors – or a combination of the two – provided all regulatory and licensing requirements are met.

Just a few of the standards include security measures like enclosing or locking areas for the outdoor grow, commercial-grade fencing and gates, and surveillance systems. License holders must also secure local approval for such an operation.

The majority of cannabis cultivation in New Jersey takes place entirely indoors. There are only three fully outdoor cultivation facilities – Brute’s Roots in Hammonton, North Lake Supply in Augusta and Nova Farms in Swedesboro, according to the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission.

$1 billion market

Overall, 24.52 million ounces of cannabis was gathered from 6,051 harvests last year to power the state’s $1 billion market, the CRC said. That’s a 49% increase from 2023, when New Jersey’s 4,540 harvests yielded 16.41 million ounces of cannabis.

As of October 2025, 25.87 million ounces of cannabis has been produced by 18,679 harvests, the state said.

Since the launch of adult-use sales in April 2022, the industry has grown to include over 60 cultivator licenses, and more than 260 medicinal and recreational dispensaries open across 21 counties.

Between January and December 2024, the price per gram of adult use flower/bud went from $12.49 to $9.93 while medicinal use flower/bud’s price per gram dropped from $10.92 to $8.96, the CRC reported.

A recently released report from cannabis market data firm Headset shows that New Jersey has some of the highest cannabis prices nationwide, but that the prices are declining quickly. The state has one of the highest average basket sizes ($72) and average item prices ($33) compared to other tracked legal markets, the analysis found.

New Jersey also has the second lowest number of brands (152) and SKUs (6,060). However, product count has grown 158% in the past year and continues to steadily increase, according to Headset.

Headset characterizes New Jersey’s industry as being in “a maturing phase.”

“Compared to other markets nationwide, New Jersey retailers perform well, with average daily sales of around $17,000. However, the market faces evolving challenges: falling prices, an increasing number of stores, and a more competitive brand and product landscape. While stores have benefited from high basket totals in recent years, the growing competition means retailers must adapt to changing consumer behavior and market conditions as this young market matures,” it said.

For its analysis, the firm reviewed data from real-time sales reporting by participating cannabis retailers via point-of-sales systems linked up with Headset’s business intelligence software, according to the report.