Reviewed by Samantha Mann
Key Takeaways
Teens are using the term “gardening” on TikTok as a code word for marijuana use, so it’s important to stay informed about online slang.
Keep calm and approach your child with love and understanding if you suspect they are experimenting with marijuana.
Open communication and teaching healthy digital habits can help kids navigate social media safely.
If you’re like most parents, you’d probably be thrilled to hear that your teen has taken up the wholesome hobby of gardening. But if they’re spending more time discussing gardening on TikTok than digging in the dirt, you may find that their new green thumb relates to something else entirely: smoking weed.
“Gardening” is a coined code word referring to marijuana usage on social media, especially TikTok. Users of the app are notorious for inventing terms to get around its strict content guidelines, which prohibit discussions around drugs and other adult topics. As marijuana is commonly referred to as “weed,” “bud,” or “grass”—it’s not a stretch to see how “gardening” has come to be associated with the drug.
Here’s what you need to know about the term, how teens are using it, and what you steps you should take as a parent.
How Teens Use ‘Gardening’ on Social Media
Search for “gardening”on TikTok, and you’ll still find plenty of posts about composting or planting a vegetable garden. But you’ll also find quite a few posts in which users share how to get started with “gardening,” how “gardening” has improved their lives, and what they like to eat after a “gardening sesh” (sesh means session).
Gardening on TikTok may seem like a harmless or even funny way to discuss a grown-up hobby that is in fact now legal in many places—but it’s a different story when it comes to teens taking part in these discussions. “If your child is on social media, it’s not a matter of if, but when, they will be served with drug-related content,” says Nicki Reisberg, a digital safety advocate and host of the podcast Scrolling to Death. That is a normal part of our teen’s experience on these platforms, whether we like it or not.
“The issue of our kids accessing drugs on social media is pervasive and we all need to do better: parents, the social media platforms, and our legislative bodies,” she adds, pointing to the DEA’s 2024 National Drug Threat Assessment, which made frequent references to the dangers of social media as a distribution tool targeting teens.
Who Coined ‘Gardening’ on TikTok?
TikToker Natalie Benson has been credited with originating the use of the term “gardening” to refer to smoking weed on her new account after the old one was banned because she was discussing her marijuana use.
What To Do If Your Teen Has a ‘Gardening Sesh’ Online
It’s perfectly normal for teens to be curious and experiment—but what do you do if you find hints pointing toward a concerning new hobby on social media? “If a parent finds evidence that their child is experimenting with marijuana, ‘stay calm!’ is the name of the game,” Reisberg says. “If you give your child a big or angry reaction to these behaviors, you are no longer their safe space. Take a breath; take a minute; take a day. Whatever it takes for you to come to your child in a calm and loving manner.”
You may find that it’s all just talk—or it may be something more. “If a parent finds out their child is using cannabis or other substances, the first step is finding out what level of support their child needs,” says Capt. Christopher Jones, director of SAMHSA’s Center for Substance Abuse Prevention. He points to the resources at FindSupport.gov, which cover issues including how to help someone, how to cope, and how to find health care or support.
It’s also important to be aware that kids are always adopting questionable terms to fit in. It doesn’t necessarily mean they are engaging in the activity. “Kids are well known for their use of slang terms in many aspects of their lives,” says Jones.
“Sometimes they do it to be funny, sometimes it’s to be cool, and sometimes it’s to be secretive. While keeping up with the rapidly evolving terminology can be a challenge for adults, it’s important that we stay aware of more dangerous trends, but also don’t overreact when we hear a new word or context we don’t understand,” adds Jones. “And for parents, what is most important is keeping lines of communication open with their kids.”
Teaching Appropriate Social Media Habits
“These days, the most unsafe place our child can be is in their bedroom with unrestricted access to a smartphone,” Reisberg says. “While the ultimate responsibility lies on the parents to make safe decisions around devices, we are at a disadvantage when the platforms are built to be addictive and harmful, with no legal liability on the social media companies. This is why we need our U.S. legislators to step up and pass comprehensive legislation to keep our kids safe online.”
The Kids Online Health and Safety Taskforce (KOHS), which is co-led by SAMHSA, issued a report detailing how we can make online spaces safer for kids, including resources to help parents engage with and support their children. Though “gardening” may seem like a trivial thing, there is still potential for your child to come across other more dangerous drug use online. Most social media sites use an algorithm that shows users more content in the spaces they interact with most. So if your teen is deep into “gardening TikTok”—it may be worth taking a look at the other content on their feeds.
“Just monitoring a child’s online behavior won’t address the root issues,” Jones says. “As adults, we have the ability to teach skills like establishing boundaries, picking appropriate content, and managing the challenges digital content can pose. Modeling appropriate behavior and having these kinds of conversations with kid builds healthier habits and resilience when it comes to digital media.”
Read the original article on Parents
