By Canadian Press

Up in smoke: Workers remove dozens of apparent marijuana plants from Wisconsin Capitol tulip garden

May 17, 2024 | 3:12 PM

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Someone’s plans to harvest dozens of apparent marijuana plants grown on the Wisconsin state Capitol grounds have gone up in smoke.

The plants sprouted in a tulip garden outside the Capitol, WMTV-TV reported Thursday.

Tatyana Warrick, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Administration, told The Associated Press in an email Friday that workers had removed the plants, but that her agency couldn’t determine if they were marijuana or hemp. Both are forms of cannabis, but only marijuana has the compound that gets people high.

Warrick didn’t respond to questions about how the plants might have made it into the garden.

University of Wisconsin-Madison botanist Shelby Ellison, who examined the plants for WMTV before they were removed, told the station that they were cannabis plants. But she told The Associated Press on Friday that she couldn’t say for certain whether they were marijuana or hemp.

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She said there were dozens of the plants in the garden, suggesting someone planted them intentionally.

“It was just a large number of plants for it to be anything accidental,” Ellison said.

Marijuana remains illegal in all forms in Wisconsin. Assembly Republicans introduced a bill last session that would have legalized marijuana for medical purposes, but they couldn’t muster support among their state Senate counterparts and the measure never got a hearing.

Todd Richmond, The Associated Press