Sandtrout
Rising Star
I was fortunate enough to travel to the foothills of the Andes in Argentina to visit Trichocereus terscheckii with a contemporary "cactus practitioner." This cactus, he told me, was medicine for the heart. The ancient people, he said, would traverse the Andes solely on San Pedro and water.
His technique was beautifully simple. I am honored to share with you his technique and these pictures. Please treat this information with respect.
Here are some pictures to illustrate the process. Here is a link at the bottom to a video showing how he removed the spines:
We arrived before sunrise and left as the sun was setting. The whole day was spent tending to San Pedro.
Placing a small amount of tobacco and dirt to "facilitate healing" of the cactus.
The top of the arm used is grafted onto the base to allow continued growth.
The cut "arm" is ready for despining. The video above shows a genius method for despining. After the spines are removed, the core is removed and angular cuts are made parallel to the skin, cutting the white material away from the green material under the skin. The "ribs" are separated from each other and chopped to yield chunks with green flesh attached to the skin. These chunks often have the fluffy aereoles and the base of broken spines. These are included in the final product.
These chunks are then dried by fire. Further drying takes place either by a fire or in the sun. These chips are crushed by hand and then lightly boiled for 45 minutes to an hour to produce a mild, fresh and somewhat flowery tea with considerable potency. For best taste, the tea should be thoroughly dried, in which case they become brittle and the green taste dissipates to leave the true subtle flavor of this cactus.
Small amounts of ash and dirt are considered "good for the medicine." As the chunks dry, they often become mottled a with rust color.
Cact Eye Watch
Cheers to the Nexus.
His technique was beautifully simple. I am honored to share with you his technique and these pictures. Please treat this information with respect.
Here are some pictures to illustrate the process. Here is a link at the bottom to a video showing how he removed the spines:
We arrived before sunrise and left as the sun was setting. The whole day was spent tending to San Pedro.
Placing a small amount of tobacco and dirt to "facilitate healing" of the cactus.
The top of the arm used is grafted onto the base to allow continued growth.
The cut "arm" is ready for despining. The video above shows a genius method for despining. After the spines are removed, the core is removed and angular cuts are made parallel to the skin, cutting the white material away from the green material under the skin. The "ribs" are separated from each other and chopped to yield chunks with green flesh attached to the skin. These chunks often have the fluffy aereoles and the base of broken spines. These are included in the final product.
These chunks are then dried by fire. Further drying takes place either by a fire or in the sun. These chips are crushed by hand and then lightly boiled for 45 minutes to an hour to produce a mild, fresh and somewhat flowery tea with considerable potency. For best taste, the tea should be thoroughly dried, in which case they become brittle and the green taste dissipates to leave the true subtle flavor of this cactus.
Small amounts of ash and dirt are considered "good for the medicine." As the chunks dry, they often become mottled a with rust color.
Cact Eye Watch
Cheers to the Nexus.