Illicit Gardens 

Illicit Gardens

Industry	Cannabis
Founded	2021, Missouri
Products	Vapor Pens, Flowers, Pre-Rolls, Edibles, Concentrates, Topicals, and Tenctures
Areas served	Missouri, New Jersey, and New York
Website	illicitgardens.com

Illicit Gardens (or Illicit Brands) is a multi-award-winning cannabis production and cultivation company that creates high-quality medical and recreational cannabis products in Missouri, New Jersey, and New York. The brand was launched by Adam Diltz and Nate Ruby early in 2020 and focuses on hand-cut flowers, in-house cultivation methods, and cannabis justice reform activism.

Overview

Illicit Gardens was conceptualized in early 2020 by co-founders Nate Ruby and Adam Diltz, rapidly becoming one of Missouri’s top-selling cannabis brands shortly after the state’s medical market launched. The company’s philosophy is based on cultural authenticity and deliberate disruption, where the aesthetic draws on the nostalgia of the 1980s and 1990s, and unique strain art resembles album covers. The branding approach will reclaim the term illicit of its negative and historical connotations with the ban of cannabis and inform the population about injustices that happened in the past. Illicit Gardens has a powerful focus on cannabis criminal justice reform and social advocacy. Since 2020, the company has made donations exceeding $ 400,000 to local and national groups that support the release of cannabis inmates, with partners including the Last Prisoner Project and the Canna Convict Project.

This social responsibility initiative is even in the name of the brand, which is intended to represent the hypocrisy of cannabis laws and attract attention to the fact that there are thousands of people in prisons because they committed crimes related to cannabis, which are no longer illegal in several states. The firm has an advanced cultivation and production presence, demonstrated by its Clean Green Certified designation, and has strategically extended its wholesale and retail business into regulated markets such as New Jersey and New York and entrenched itself as a developing Multi-State Operator.

History

Illicit Gardens was established in 2020 by Kansas City natives Nate Ruby and Adam Diltz, who both brought substantial cannabis industry experience to the venture. Ruby’s mother, Carolyn Richmond, joined as a partner after Ruby studied the medical marijuana industry as a teenager and earned a law degree at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. The management team holds over 50 years of collective experience running more than 40 cannabis facilities across eight states. The provocative name Illicit was deliberately chosen to challenge cannabis prohibition and spark debate about the inconsistency of laws that have kept thousands imprisoned for actions now legal in many states.​

The company, which works under parent corporation OXG, LLC, began operations in 2020, following the state of Missouri’s legalization of medical marijuana through a constitutional amendment. Operations include the cultivation brand Illicit, the From The Earth disk chain, and sister brand Cosmic Seed. In May 2021, Illicit would relocate to a 100,000-square-foot cultivation plant in Kansas City with 68,000 square feet of cultivation space in 26 grow rooms with high-tech biosecurity measures and grow under LED lighting.

By late 2021, both BDSA and LeafLink ranked Illicit as Missouri’s top-selling cannabis brand, capturing nearly 14% of statewide sales. Rapid success resulted from product excellence and continuous innovation. Concurrently, Illicit launched criminal justice reform efforts, partnering with the Last Prisoner Project and Canna Convict Project, and donating over $400,000 to secure the release of cannabis prisoners by 2022.

In April 2022, Illicit launched the Freedoms Campaign, featuring interviews with eight cannabis prisoners to raise awareness and legal funds. In late 2023, the company achieved Clean Green Certification, becoming one of fewer than 0.5 percent of Missouri cannabis brands to earn this distinction.

One of the remarkable achievements of the company in 2024 was the decision to enter New Jersey and take the Illicit Missouri experience to a new market. In the future, the company entered the New York recreational market in 2025 and intends to open its first Illicit brand dispensaries in New Jersey.

Products and Services

Illicit Gardens offers a diverse array of cannabis products, all derived from a genetic library of over 30 hand-selected, pheno-hunted strains cultivated with precision. The brand focuses on hand-trimming, proprietary drying, and bio-security systems, which guarantee potent, contaminant-free products. The products include flower, pre-rolls, vapes, edibles, and concentrates, which can be found at the dispensaries such as From the Earth in Missouri and Hashery in New Jersey. Clean Green Certification uses USDA organic standards, which ensure sustainable practice without the use of banned pesticides.

Flower

Flower products are the main part of the Illicit line that includes huge buds of strains such as Animal Star Cookies (23.17% THC), Dirty Taxi (25.59% THC), and Gorilla Pie. These come in 3.5g, 7g (popcorn buds), 14g, and 28g jars that are trimmed by hand to achieve the best potency and look, leaving trichomes. The genetic library consists of indica, sativa, and hybrids, which are phenotyped based on yield and terpene profiles.

Distinctions: Energy-efficient cultivation saves 2,000 gallons of water per day, and biosecurity destroys contaminants. Popcorn buds are cheaper and do not reduce quality compared to other brands, and it is perfect in the hands of people with low incomes and high expectations.

Pre-Rolls

Pre-rolls are available with Smoko (pre-ground flower in jars, Ready2Roll) and infused varieties in 1-, 2-, or 5-packs. Such strains as Animal Star Cookies (0.5g 5-pack, 23.17% THC) are good, high-powered hits that taste good. Infused pre-rolls, such as diamond-infused ones, increase the effects to experience a potent hit each time. The Midnight Sessions series is launching quarterly limited-edition strains in flower and Smoko, based on outstanding terpenes and effects.

Distinctive: Slim, fitted suits are used on the go, where infusion increases the level of cannabinoids.

Vapes

Vape products include Live Resin Carts, such as Animal Star Cookies 0.5g, 78.48% THC, and Classy Carts, manufactured based on the frozen material through hydrocarbon extraction of full-spectrum cannabinoids and terpenes. These preserve the essence of the flower in a portable form, and solventless procedures make them pure. They are award-winning (2025 Greenway Best Live Resin Vape) with the 30+ strain library.

Attributes: Premium equipment produces high-quality oil that is provided with discrete inhalation with abundant flavors reminiscent of buds.

Concentrates

The concentrate portfolio by Illicit comprises live resin, live rosin, diamonds in sauce, sugar, badder, shatter, and crumble- covering both the solvent-based and solventless processes of extraction. These are the products that will serve advanced cannabis users with the highest potential and preservation of terpene.

Live resin concentrates are extracted using hydrocarbons of fresh-frozen cannabis and retain the original terpene profile of the plant, which produces accurate strain-specific flavours and aromas. Consistency ranges from the terpenes-rich and liquid-rich sauce to the granular sugar consistency to the creamy and whipped badder.

Edibles

The Illicit Gardens edibles will cover the Gemstones hard candy, gummies of different cannabinoid concentrations, and soft caramels in different flavors. Gemstones Candy- introduced in late 2024- is confectioner-made rock candy-style edibles, which come in six flavors: Orange Cream, Strawberry Cream, Butterscotch, Sour Watermelon, Blue Raspberry, and Green Apple.

The Gemstones jars will have 100mg of total THC in ten 10mg portions each to make an accurate dosage. Some of them have other cannabinoids: Orange Cream is a 2:2:1 proportion of CBD:CBN: THC, Strawberry Cream is a 5:1 CBG: THC, and Butterscotch is 10:1 CBD: THC to produce different therapeutic effects.

The gummy assortment features ratioed variants with THC and CBD, CBG, or CBN to create definite effects, a daytime energy formula, night sedation, and an everywhere balanced formula. The most famous are the Peaches and Dreams nighttime gummies, which come in the ratio of 2:2:1 CBD:CBN: THC, the Wild Strawberry Daytime Gummies, which are 5:1 CBG: THC, and the regular THC gummies in various flavors and strengths, 50mg-500mg total THC in a pack.

Awards and Recognition

Illicit Gardens has received significant industry acclaim for its products, branding, and corporate impact, as detailed in the table below.

Market Metrics and Headset Data Analysis

According to Headset.io, by 2025, Illicit / Illicit Gardens had annual sales of its products in calendar year 2025 in the different states of the USA of approximately $69.4 million, with a good market share of all cannabis commodities sold, especially in the Vapor Pens category, which ranked #2, and Pre-Rolls/Flowers ranked #3 in Missouri.

Top 5 SKUs by sales:

FAQs

What payment methods does Illicit Gardens accept?

Dispensaries take cash, debit, and Dutchie Pay; credit cards are not normally accepted because the federal government has restricted them.

Do I need a medical card?

Medical cards have tax advantages or increased limits, but adults are allowed to buy recreationally in Missouri and New Jersey, at 21+.

Where am I to purchase Illicit products?

Found at From the Earth in Missouri, Hashery in New Jersey, and some spots in New York; visit illicit to find out.

What is Clean Green Certified?

It uses the USDA organic requirements for cannabis, which guarantees sustainable farming without the use of pesticides.

How potent are the edibles?

Gummies are 10mg or 20mg of THC each; low dosage at onset.