Ask a Budtender: Budtender Answers Top Cannabis Questions for You

It’s thanks to the fun, passionate, and knowledgeable staff in our retail stores that LivWell is where we are today, no doubt about it. Budtenders are deep wells of cannabis knowledge and are a huge help to our customers, who rely on them to answer any questions or concerns on a daily basis. That’s why we asked one of our seasoned budtenders to tell us about the top questions they get at the dispensary! Bianca Box, or “Box” as she’s known around the store, is a budtender at our dispensary located in Fort Collins.

Here are the top frequently asked questions Box gets asked on the daily.

1. What's your most affordable and highest THC flower?

Box: This one’s always number one, and I get it. For a lot of people, at the end of the day it's about the best bang for your buck. I think our pre-weigh flower is a pretty great option for them. Overall, the average THC level of our flower tends to run between 16–20%.

2. Does THC percent really matter?

Box: I always tell customers THC percentage doesn’t really matter. On some level, yes, it’s good to have a certain amount of THC in the strain—otherwise it won’t be psychoactive at all. But some of my all-time favorite strains, like Blueberry Headband or Jack Flash, usually test around 13–15%. These strains treat me amazingly well, way better than a Ghost Train Haze at over 30%, for example. The strain that works best for you depends on your own body, too. So no, it doesn’t really matter, but what does matter is that the strain has a variety of cannabinoids and terpenes all working together with the THC. At the end of the day we all have different experiences with this plant, so you’ve got to explore to find which one is best for you.

3. Do you get high at work?

Box: Haha, the answer is definitely NO. We’re absolutely not allowed to get high before or during work—it could cost me my job—and I don’t want to do that! Besides, I can get high after, so I just wait until then. It’s kind of like being a bartender—you don’t want a drunk bartender, right?

4. Do you have any flower strains that are high in CBD?

Box: This one gets asked a lot too, and I usually direct them to our Pre ‘98 Bubba Kush strain —it’s a smooth hitting, CBD-heavy strain. Our cannabis products selection does rotate constantly depending on what we’re growing at the time, so it’s a good idea to call ahead and check if your dispensary is stocked with some Pre ‘98 beforehand.

5. If I'm from out of state what's my limit on how much I can purchase?

Box: Since we border Wyoming and a couple of other “dry” states, we get asked this a lot, especially up in Fort Collins and around Garden City. Recently the law was changed to an ounce a day for all recreational customers in Colorado, no matter where you’re from.

6. What's your favorite way to get high?

Box: It really depends on the day for me. Or what time of the day it is. Or what mood I’m in, you know? But overall I’d say my favorite way to smoke marijuana is with a bowl. I love the little chillums and hand-blown bowl pieces—you can pack it, hit it a couple of times, put it down, do something, come back to it… I just like that process. Unless I have a bunch of people around, then I like joints, because you can pass it off and forget about it for a little bit and come back to it. But overall, bowls are it for me. There’s something to be said about hitting it and quitting it sometimes.

7. What's the difference between indica, sativa and hybrid?

Box: When I get asked this one, I like to give them a little summary of the differences, unless they want to get more in depth. Sativas are generally more cerebral, energetic, daytime “let’s get shit done” types of strains (I’ve written papers on sativas for my grad school program, actually!). Indicas tend to be better for getting “in da couch,” more body relaxation. A lot of people use these for nighttime relaxation or for managing stress. Then a hybrid is a combination of both, where you can still be productive, but you’re also more relaxed about it!

I like to personalize these conversations too by letting them know that I mostly smoke sativas. If they ask me what individual indica strains I like, I’ll tell them I don’t know, BUT my coworker does, so let’s find out what they think! Customers like it when we make shopping a homier experience and get real, honest opinions from our team—this way, we’re all engaged in the process together.

8. Do you like your job?

Box: I love my job! It’s super fun. I mean, where else can I sit here, talk shit with you, sell you weed, and have you tip me about it? Nowhere! It’s great. I love it.

9. What are dabs? I thought dabbing was a dance that kids do.

Box: I hear this a lot from older folks. While it’s also a dance that the kids do, dabs are a cannabis concentrate. There are different types of concentrates, but generally they are a viscous, waxy texture. I like to show our customers the different ways to consume concentrates, so I’ll pull out one of our terp pens (which are amazing, by the way) along with a dab rig and torch to show them a couple of different ways to take dabs. For newbies, I recommend the terp pen. It’s a super simple method that anyone can use. All you have to do is turn it on, dip the tip in your dab container while inhaling, activating the terp pen coils—and that’s that. The dab rig is another popular method, although it takes a little more time and resources.

Up at CSU Fort Collins, Bianca is a Master of Social Work graduate student. She stepped down from a nonprofit leadership position to go to grad school full time, but still wanted a fun job that would keep her engaged with the community while studying. Outside of school and work, she volunteers as a mentor for at-risk youth in Larimer County. For fun, she’s a big fan of fantasy and sci fi books, and loves diving into the immersive worlds of RPG video games like Elder Scrolls and Fallout.

Interested in becoming a budtender at one of our recreational or medical cannabis dispensaries? Check out our open positions.



Use of Marijuana Concentrate may lead to: Psychotic symptoms and/or Psychotic disorder (delusions, hallucinations, or difficulty distinguishing reality); Mental Health Symptoms/Problems; Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome (CHS) (uncontrolled and repetitive vomiting); Cannabis use disorder/dependence, including physical and psychological dependence.   Please consume responsibly. This product may cause impairment and may be habit forming. There may be health risks associated with consumption of this product.  State laws impact what dispensaries can and can’t sell to recreational customers and medical marijuana patients. Not every type of product, consumption method, dosage form, or potency mentioned on this blog will be permitted in all locations. 

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