Dana Larsen has shipped millions of cannabis seeds across Canada in an effort to 'normalize the cultivation' of the plant ahead of marijuana legalization.

The man who’s helped ship millions of cannabis seeds across the country for the last couple years is visiting Winnipeg Monday to drop off tens of thousands more.

B.C.-based cannabis advocate Dana Larsen, 45, is touring cross-country with his group Overgrow Canada, which aims to hand out five million cannabis seeds this year.

In 2016, they spread 2.5 million seeds, encouraging Canadians to plant cannabis in public places like parks to "normalize the cultivation" of the plant, Larsen said in an interview Monday.

On Overgrow Canada's Facebook page, hundreds of photos submitted show pot plants growing in public spaces, such as parks or boulevards, and in peoples' private homes.

"That to me is real legalization. It doesn’t really matter what Trudeau does after that. If cannabis is growing openly from coast to coast and nobody is enforcing that law, then we’ve won," he said.

In Winnipeg, Larsen will speak at the Gwen Secter Creative Living Centre (1588 Main St.) at 7 p.m. Monday about "the hidden history of cannabis in Canada," how to open dispensaries and what’s coming down the pipe for marijuana legalization.

"I don’t believe legalization is coming next year at all… I think it’s going to be coming eventually, probably after the next election or longer," he said.

Larsen believes public pressure it’s what’s spurring the federal government into legalizing pot and "the dispensary movement is winning by and large across the country."

"Politicians aren’t promising to legalize because they believe prohibition is wrong or they believe cannabis is good, or any of those kinds of ideas. They’re trying to call for legalization because they’ve lost control over cannabis prohibition," Larsen said.

Every person who attends Larsen’s talks can take home at least 100 cannabis seeds, he said. So come next spring, Winnipeg could look much more green.

"If you see pot plants growing around Winnipeg or anywhere else, the odds are I had something to do with it," Larsen said.