[420 Girl]

Co - Colorado's top gardening experts have been ordered to ignore questions about how to grow medical marijuana over fears they could lose their federal funding.

Employees of Colorado State University's extension service have been advised by university lawyers that because marijuana remains an illegal drug under federal law, they cannot be involved with it. That means, according to the lawyers, no advice, no opinions and definitely no pot in their offices.

CSU spokesman Brad Bohlander said "several" extension offices received inquires from would-be marijuana growers. He said the conflict between Colorado's Amendment 20 and federal law prompted CSU to issue the new guidelines.

"Some of the agents didn't want anything to do with it," Bohlander said.

Extension agents of CSU have offices in almost every county and provide a conduit between academia and the state's agricultural community. Extension also certifies "master gardeners" who give yard and gardening advice.

Master gardener Bill Ciesla of Fort Collins said no one has asked him for marijuana-growing advice, and he said he wouldn't offer any.

"I wouldn't touch it," Ciesla said.

Under Colorado's voter-approved Amendment 20, Colorado residents can grow and consume small amounts of marijuana for medical reasons. That's created a booming business: Marijuana is easy to grow, but raising and harvesting potent pot requires expertise, according to marijuana dispensary owners.

Dispensary owners say the majority of the marijuana they sell is grown locally, generally under grow lights in garages, warehouses and basements. Amendment 20 has also spawned the opening of stores selling the grow lights and hydroponic systems favored by marijuana growers.

Master gardeners share CSU-published research and recommendations, but Ciesla said the extension service hasn't yet published any pot-growing guidelines.

"And I don't envision CSU Extension publishing anything like that," Ciesla said.

The extension service also offers diagnostic services for gardeners, who can bring in unhealthy plants to learn what's causing the problems.

In the memo, CSU lawyers noted that the university is a drug-free workplace and said any marijuana brought in to extension offices will be turned over to authorities for destruction. The attorneys noted that any extension employees or master gardeners ignoring the rules and aiding marijuana growers will assume "personal liability" for any legal action brought against them.

"The bottom line is that [under federal law] it's still illegal," Bohlander said.

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