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MagusTasmanicus

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Posts posted by MagusTasmanicus

  1. Posted

    Fantastic - thanks for the photos!

     

    Building a simple top bar hive is the next project for me - planning on starting early next year.

     

    Never beekeeped before, but also plan to look into gaining some local Tasmanian training.

     

    I'm a strong believer in "no bee no me" theory.

    • Like 1

  6. Posted

    Thanks Cubism - appreciate the link to the full article. 

     

    I like to think that we are the microcosm and all that is without us is within us, but their conclusion is a little disillusioning:

     

    "There is no evidence to suggest that DMT can accumulate within the brain or within neurons at physiologically relevant concentrations; such inferences are either not supported by direct experimental evidence or are based on flawed experiments."

     

    Still, further studies may prove otherwise!

  8. Posted

    20 hours ago, Yeti101 said:

    I don't really have a mycological space at my current place yet. But I did get a copy of Mycelium Running for Christmas, have read the whole thing already and am feeling very inspired. 

     

    Me too Yeti - although I read it as an ebook a while back - rereading and feeling massively inspired as well!

     

    Just read The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben, and the two combined give me faith that nature can save us from ourselves.

     

    Sticking to the thread topic, I've been placing mycelium spawn in suitable spots around around my garden. 

     

     

    • Like 1

  10. Posted

    19 hours ago, waterboy 2.0 said:

    From past experience it may be getting too warm, if you don't get germination set the pots aside for a year. There's a chance of some autumn and more so after winter action.

     

    Temperature fluctuation greatly influences them germinating. I found autumn a good time to sow, letting them sit winter out in the pots outdoors. That gave the most consistent results.

     

    They slow up with the heat.

     

    YMMV

     

    Thanks waterboy 2.0.

     

    I'm also a great believer in setting aside your pots if no growth has appeared.

     

    Coincidently, last weekend I found that some Darlingtonia california seedlings have appeared after being seeded over 18 months ago (a first for me)!

     

     

  13. Posted

    Thanks for the post and pics Inyan.

     

    I have a special place where I go to be at peace: the tree I sit under is a a gnarly old pine deformed by sea storms and each year it shades a couple of amanitas - imo the most spectacular of fungi.

     

    Thanks also for the great idea of spore spreading - I think I'll do the same!

  15. Posted

    I'm growing with a view to making a tincture.

     

    I found this recipe when I was searching:

     

    Wild Lettuce; Lactuca Virosa Preparation

     Here is a recipe for making a strong Lactuca, Wild Lettuce, tincture. It is prepared differently than a more traditional way to increase the effects of it’s sedative anodyne qualities. This plant is also known as Lettuce Opium or Wild Opium.

    With preparing this form of Lactuca; Wild Lettuce tincture, it is important to have all aspects and equipment prepared beforehand such as knowing where there is a stand of Lactuca growing, having your equipment ready, and knowing that you have enough time during the days it takes to make it, which aren’t much, less than 2 hours per day for about 5 days. Read on.

    Basically, I use this form of preparation to condense the latex in the plant which I assume contains most of its nervine qualities. Otherwise one ends up with a weak medicine due to all the ‘roughage’ that is a part of these stately plants. The goal is to maximize the concentration of latex. This is a bit of a challenge with Wild Lettuce, Lactuca, as there is a lot of plant matter to work around to get the latex without the mainly inert cellulose and other plant matter.

     

    wild_lettuce,Lactuca_Virosa_botanical Always you make sure you identify the plant correctly before picking. Picture shows a botanical of Wild Lettuce

    Tools needed for making Wild Lettuce Tincture

    1.Pruners-to cut plants

    2.Tincture press

    3.Ethanol-95%

    4.Blender- a good sturdy one

    5.Stove

    6.Stainless steel pot with a lid

     

    Preparation of Wild Lettuce Tincture

    1.Find a stand of Wild Lettuce plants. I have used a number of species and they all seem useful, though some more careful observations of species may help figure this out. I have not used any close relatives that also yield latex, such as Sonchus.

    2.The best time to make this tincture is when the plant is at its maximum latex yield, which seems to be around when it is just going to flower. It is easy to see the amount of latex, remove a leaf and the white milky latex should flow freely.

    3.While all parts of Wild Lettuce contain this latex, I just make the medicine from the above ground parts, as it is just easier to not have to wash and cut up the roots, though I may be missing something here, as the roots do exude a fair bit of the latex.

    4.Cut a few Wild Lettuce stalks

    5.Bring them right away to where you will be processing them into tincture.

    6.Cut them up into blender-size pieces

    Lactuca_Virosa_Wild_Lettuce_latex Picture shows the latex from the Wild Lettuce plant

    7.Put them in the blender, and cover with ethanol

    8.Blend

    9.Add as much ethanol and material as you can to get a big wad of blenderized Wild Lettuce stem, saturated in ethanol

    10.Let sit overnight (or longer)

    11.Press tincture in tincture press

    12.Cut more Wild Lettuce

    13.Cut into blender-size pieces

    14.Put in blender, add the menstruum that you recently pressed

    15.Add this into the blender, along with enough 95% ethanol to cover and blend.

    16.Let sit overnight.

    17.Follow this process for a few days, cut, add menstruum from previously pressed tincture, blend, and add enough ethanol to get the juice out. And then press this for the next batch.

    18.After a few days of this you should have a fair bit of fluid (menstruum)

    19.Put this in a stainless steel pot with a lid on it

    20.Bring to a high simmer

    21.Evaporate and reduce the fluid so it gets more black and ‘tar-like’

    22.This is your medicine

    23.Be aware, that as you simmer, ethanol evaporates at a lower temperature than water, so make sure there is enough ethanol in your final product to keep it stable

    24.Enjoy and let me know the results.

    • Like 2

  16. Posted

    On 11/09/2016 at 7:34 AM, mud said:

    I suggested that a Mother might put some wild lettuce in her daughters salad,

    after the Doctors gave her 9yr old Endone for pain in the lower back region that they suspect might be her kidneys.

     

    I received a hefty dose of science sledging from the keyboard warring supernerds that supported the process of her being donated sperm and artifically inseminated to have this child.

    For the record, her child was born with cystic fibrosis.

     

    They wanted peer reviewed, published medical journal proof that wild lettuce works for any of the claims that I proposed it did, sucessfullly.

    So I had a little dig for them.

     

    I found that her Doctors online resource (WebMD) does list the benefits of wild lettuce but highlights in bold text that 'more evidence is required for its efficacy'. Then I followed the white rabbit.

    The U.S national library of medicine which they link to actually does have a published paper that focuses solely on the 'toxic effects' of eating the lettuce. Supposedly by 'natives who didn't know it was dangerous' but had in fact eaten it for millenia. While that paper did everything to disinform us further, it did happen to reveal that wild lettuce contains Hyoscyamine.

    I then researched Hyoscyamine, noticed it is synthesised from deadly Datura, and is used to treat nearly every single one of the symptoms that a C.F child would have.

    And interestingly, wild lettuce is probably the most highly targeted 'weed' for roundup spraying across Australia. It's nearly undefeatable too. And now I know why.

    The little 'wishballs' it makes to disperse it seeds,

    really is 'fairy dust'. 

    Nature wouldn't let us suffer all this without some kind of relief. So it puts it everywhere for us. All around us. Panaceas; heal all plant helpers everywhere you look! Almost like little nature spirits are ensuring its success. And it is 'successive' by definition. The green life required for more green life to develop within an ecosystem. An analgesic, tonifying, detoxifying super medicine that can kill pain, support lungs, heart, guts and even control some symptoms of Parkinsons disease.

    Aren't the glycophosphates from roundup reported to cause some of these problems?

     

    So, they talk it down..talk it sideways.. induce fear surrounding it.. poison it.. say it doesnt work or needs more evidence..

    BUT then they isolate the same active from another plant known to dark brujo and shaman forever

    and package it as medicine for the same illnesses they've just created by poisoning it's competition.

     

    This seems to be the 'structure of conspiracy'.

    And now I see it everywhere.

     

     

     

     

     

    I hope your friend uses wild lettuce and gains some relief/improvement of symptoms.

     

    I found your post a sad indication of our society, but also uplifting that people such as yourself are willing to offer support to others.

     

    I have sown a hell of lot of Lactuca virosa this year and am hoping to make a tincture from the latex with a view to relieving pain and just making life a little more relaxing. 

     

    Hope things go well for your friend and her child.

    • Like 1

  17. Posted

    My 'two cents'.

     

    I'm stuck deep into "society', but I'm an actor in it - I use it to my own ends.

     

    Whilst I'm not an adherent of any belief system, but I have learnt a bit in my 50 years. One source of 'guidance' I obtained was from Terence McKenna:

     

    "Culture is not [our] friend"

     

     Culture "is for other people’s convenience and the convenience of various institutions, churches, companies, tax collection schemes, what have you. It is not your friend. It insults you. It disempowers you. It uses and abuses you. None of us are well-treated by culture.”

     

    Leave it all behind - become actors - don't get involved in these events. Protect yourself and loved ones, but leave all this behind.

     

    Stay cool.

    • Like 1

  18. Posted

     

     

    Hi All, got a few more seeds to share.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    4 lots of 5 (I reckon 5 seeds gives you the best chance of at least germinating one).

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    I'm always keen to swap for spore prints and preferably p.cube or sub for my microscopy hobby.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    As before, I’ll cover postage.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    I’m experimenting with pre-germination, stratification and direct sow. Be keen to see how others go.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Haven’t read all of this thread yet, but it looks interesting:

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    mandragora.thumb.jpg.926a4c8856c06232505357aee8d4dcfb.jpg Stay cool.

     

     

    mandragora.thumb.jpg.926a4c8856c06232505357aee8d4dcfb.jpg

    mandragora.thumb.jpg.926a4c8856c06232505357aee8d4dcfb.jpg

    • Like 1

  20. Posted

     

     

    Hi, I have a couple of packs of 5 seeds each of this mandrake - even writing the name excites me!

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Seeds were harvested this year (not by me, but soon I'll have plenty).

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    According to Hudson Grubber. “Growing the Hallucinogens: How to Cultivate and Harvest Legal Psychoactive Plants.” 

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    “It likes a light, deep soil, as the roots run far down. They will do poorly in a soil that is chalky or excessively gravelly. If the soil is too wet in winter, the roots will rot. It is propagated from seeds which should be sown in deep flats or, better, singly in pots. These should be kept well-watered and when they reach a good size they should be carefully set out at least 2 feet apart.”

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    I’d love to give them away (I am always trying to be a better person) and will do so, unless some kind individual has a spore print they would like to swap for my microscopy hobby (p.cube or sub would be great).

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Stay cool.

     

     

    • Like 4
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