Psychotria viridis Berries?

[Morbidbystandard]

I've been growing this plant for years with many berries coming and going but today it dawned on me to give them a taste. They are actually quite good likened to pomegranate.

This raises the question are these edible? Can they be used in an Ayahuasca brew? Should they be dried for propagation or thrown in with the rest of the leaves for processing?

 

[downwardsfromzero]

Clearly the seeds will be of great interest to a fair few people. I'd suggest researching the germination of Psychotria seeds like crazy, and checking out the Share the Seeds forum.

 

[Intezam]

..not sure if these are edible for non-birnds, but the ppl of Yemen make a brew from the red berries of a related plant (coffee) which the ppl prefer from roasted coffee beans/sugar/ brew when ppl chew khat. Ppl claim the red berries brew to be less interfering with the khat then roasted beans and fermented tea, yet uplifting.....
There is also a spicy version called: Qishr (Ar: قشر)

btw congrats for having it grow berries in your shower room :thumb_up:
that rocks:lol:

 

[kerelsk]

I'm sorry to say friend but I think you have a Psychotria alba there. The leaves are something of a giveaway as well as the growth habit.

Nevertheless, there are some reports of P. alba being active even though it has been analyzed not to contain DMT. I wish I still had one around with a bunch of foliage to bioassay.

 

[pinkoyd]

Yup definitely alba. In addition to the differences in the leaves, P. viridis has a different arrangement of the flower and fruit clusters.

 

[Jagube]

I've heard a first-hand report of P. alba being active. Not in a tryptamine way though. It was described as being warm / loving and "like ecstasy".

It's also sometimes used in UDV brews instead of P. viridis.

I wonder if the compound responsible for its activity could be a beta-carboline (THH?), or even a phenethylamine?

 

[pinkoyd]

I've had P. alba from six or seven different sources analyzed by Energy Control and none of them contained any alkaloids.

There are people who get some effect from alba, so who knows what constituent of the plant might be responsible for it? More research is needed as they say.

 

[skoobysnax]

I'm sorry to say friend but I think you have a Psychotria alba there. The leaves are something of a giveaway as well as the growth habit.

Nevertheless, there are some reports of P. alba being active even though it has been analyzed not to contain DMT. I wish I still had one around with a bunch of foliage to bioassay.

My guess is this is an offspring of what Botanical Spirit claims is Viridis. This is identical to my non PV sold as PV by BS. I love my tree but tbey really should change their claim. I have not brewed mine but have saved a bit of the leaf. Hmmmm....

 

[Morbidbystandard]

That really sucks because I love this plant. I guess the next question is where to go from here? I have plenty of leaf. Is it even worth my time messing with it? I thought I was good because of the spike on the under side of the leaf. Who is a reputable vendor? This was from underground roots sold a PV.

Edit: It's not from underground root. I think it's from Bouncing Bear Botanicals but I can't be sure. I can't find any record on who supplied it.

 

[Continuum]

I'd go to www.ShareTheSeeds.me. You should be able to pick up some leaf to propagate for free, and it's definitely PV.

 

[pinkoyd]

That really sucks because I love this plant. I guess the next question is where to go from here? I have plenty of leaf. Is it even worth my time messing with it? I thought I was good because of the spike on the under side of the leaf. Who is a reputable vendor? This was from underground roots sold a PV.

You can brew the leaves just as you would P. viridis. Do some ayahuasca test runs with vine only then do some with your alba leaves. Some people say they are worthless, others strongly disagree and say they do get effects, just not DMT effects. The only way to find out if it works for you is to try it yourself. You have obviously spent a good deal of time cultivating a relationship with this plant (pun not intended but unavoidable :roll: ), so take the next step and see where it goes.

If it doesn't work out the good souls over at STS are a helpful bunch. You might seek out the 'Nexus' hybrid (no relation to this site as far as I know) that our Aussie friends developed. A number of plants have made it across the pond and is definitely worth your while.

I like your setup BTW.