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Color of quality Acacia Confusa root bark?

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DesykaLamgeenie

Rising Star
I'm curious about the colors of AC root bark from different sources/origins - from my searching through the web I see that most sources selling what they claim to be Hawaiian root bark show pictures where the bark has a pinkish/reddish hue to it, and then I'm seeing what is claimed to be Taiwanese root bark that appears to be lacking that hue, and being tan/brown. This seems pretty consistent in my searching - bark of HI origin having the pink/red hue and bark of TW origin not.

I've also seen it claimed that the Hawaiian is of higher quality.

So - for those of you who have experience with Acacia Confusa root bark:

1) Was/is your bark of Hawaiian or Taiwanese origin?
2) Was/is it brown/tan, or did it have additional hues? and
3) How was the quality?

The colors may not matter at all, but I'm curious - and I don't have enough money to test out different sources and colors myself at this point.

I do have a batch on the way though, so I'll be able to contribute something to this soon.
 
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Since making this thread I've been told by a supplier of supposed Hawaiian acacia confusa bark without a deep pinkish hue (from the picture it looks more like a very light tannish orange) that bark with a deeper red/pink hue comes from baby trees, which according to him is not only unethical to harvest but also means the tree has not "had enough years to stock nutrients thus yielding a smaller extraction ratio." He also stated that for quality root bark, you want "orangey reddish brown almost gray tone cause that is the sign of a mature plant."

Now...this seller's credibility is up in the air in my eyes at this point for reasons that I won't get in to on here - but I want to state that, because if that wasn't the case I'd probably take a vendor's word for it and bring the information here without a credibility advisory such as this.

So...anyone know anything about this subject/these claims?
 
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Whether that is true about the bark color on young vs mature trees I don't know, but - on Hawaii, this tree is considered an invasive species. So it's doubtful anyone there is too concerned with sustainable harvesting.

With plants in general it's true though that the younger growth won't have as much compounds accumulated. So if this bark color is accurate, it would be a good way to ensure you're getting bark from a mature tree. Of course, nothing stops them from using a different picture.

Thanks for the info, keep us posted whatever you found out!
 
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The color of the root bark, and stem bark, have to do 100% with environment and harvester, not origin. Hawaii/Taiwanese barks are the same, it is in the harvesters where the variation seems to be biggest. both countries have excellent harvesters and poor ones, so its good to know who you sources it from, not so much where.


Since making this thread I've been told by a supplier of supposed Hawaiian acacia confusa bark without a deep pinkish hue (from the picture it looks more like a very light tannish orange) that bark with a deeper red/pink hue comes from baby trees, which according to him is not only unethical to harvest but also means the tree has not "had enough years to stock nutrients thus yielding a smaller extraction ratio." He also stated that for quality root bark, you want "orangey reddish brown almost gray tone cause that is the sign of a mature plant."
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incorrect. Darker reds/purples are obtained from large old trees. trees that are young may still be red, but tend to be lighter (less tannins is likely the case). Good bark you can smell spice in it at harvest. The only problem with stem bark is the people harvesting doing so on crappy material. thin bark on thin stems, especially further up the tree towards light, are more yellow tan.

The darkest purple/red bark i have ever witness came off a very old Taiwanese tree at the trunk. choosing the tree is an art and takes time, its hard to say exactly what to look for, but when standing there its easy to see the differences.



for your questions:

1) Was/is your bark of Hawaiian or Taiwanese origin? Both
2) Was/is it brown/tan, or did it have additional hues? and Both countries have both colors, its all about who is harvesting. I have had dark red from both and yellow from both. knowing who its from helps avoid the weaker ones.
3) How was the quality? Same thing, both have been beyond excellent and both have been lacking. Distribution seems to play little in strength, its all about selecting good trees and good bark from said trees. I think too many get greedy and strip way up the tree where it gets to be poor quality.

Whether that is true about the bark color on young vs mature trees I don't know, but - on Hawaii, this tree is considered an invasive species. So it's doubtful anyone there is too concerned with sustainable harvesting.
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I agree. Some people are paid there to remove trees. In Taiwan its different because of a far more severe climate and mountains, they are needed for landslide prevention in a very serious way.
 
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the stem bark i saw was light red/orange brown, with some darker greyish bark on the outside from hawaii. I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the yield. it was very fresh, like literally just off the tree i assume that has to be a good thing
 
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2 times I've gotten bark from Hawaii and they have been of horrible quality, but Taiwanese bark has been great quality. So I guess its the luck of the draw on whether its good or bad.
 
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hopefull said:
2 times I've gotten bark from Hawaii and they have been of horrible quality, but Taiwanese bark has been great quality. So I guess its the luck of the draw on whether its good or bad.
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This is the exact opposite of my experience. I think it has allot to do with the vendor/harvester, and the care they take. Some, it seems, are pure capitalists.
 
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I can kind of confirm the young vs old I live in hawaii and have just recently started looking into extraction I got some from a smaller younger tree the first time and the bark was a lot more red but I just got some more about 650 G of it and it's more of a tan and this tree was a lot bigger and mature I totally failed my first extraction so can't confirm if it's better but doing about 100 g at a time I'm hoping I'll have a few good extracts also praying I'm identifying the tree correctly
 

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You can see in the pics the difference in color of living (dried) bark and dead (dried) bark (from A. simplex)

EDIT : I don't know why i can't attach a pic





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I've only ever used fresh Hawaiian bark, and from my experience harvesting I've seen that some roots will have pink/red bark and others will be white. But you are more likely to find darker bark on older trees deeper underground. Though after extracting for a while I've noticed the color is not the best indicator for potency but darker barks will usually have a better crystal/goo ratio. More dmt less nmt.

I would look for trees that are older near the sides of ditches and rivers so you can see low exposed roots. The county workers in Hawaii planted these things almost anywhere they made a bridge by the highway or a county building next to a hillside to prevent erosion from damaging property and now they are everywhere.they have actually become invasive and they pay people to eradicate them, lol I wish I had that job. The Acacia in that picture looks good
 
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KloudQ7 said:
I've only ever used fresh Hawaiian bark, and from my experience harvesting I've seen that some roots will have pink/red bark and others will be white. But you are more likely to find darker bark on older trees deeper underground. Though after extracting for a while I've noticed the color is not the best indicator for potency but darker barks will usually have a better crystal/goo ratio. More dmt less nmt.

I would look for trees that are older near the sides of ditches and rivers so you can see low exposed roots. The county workers in Hawaii planted these things almost anywhere they made a bridge by the highway or a county building next to a hillside to prevent erosion from damaging property and now they are everywhere.they have actually become invasive and they pay people to eradicate them, lol I wish I had that job. The Acacia in that picture looks good
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Hey man! I saw your post and was wondering could you give some tips about harvesting ACRB?

I live in an area where these plants vastly grow as well, and I've got a small shovel and a machete8) . Do I need to peel the outer bark and remove the core? And how long do I leave the inner bark to dry before break it up and grind it into powder? Thanks a lot man, any advice is appreaciated.
 
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Rootdigger said:
Hey man! I saw your post and was wondering could you give some tips about harvesting ACRB?

I live in an area where these plants vastly grow as well, and I've got a small shovel and a machete8) . Do I need to peel the outer bark and remove the core? And how long do I leave the inner bark to dry before break it up and grind it into powder? Thanks a lot man, any advice is appreaciated.
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Where in Hawaii do you live?
 
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