Gollum

Hi all I would like to create something like Apothecary's blog, but need a bit of help. I am quite computer illiterate and just need some guidance to set it up. ( Mind you, if it is too complicated to be explained over the computer i might have to get someone in to show me.) I have some photos(finally) that i would like to share with the community and would like to be able to add to these in the future. I am pretty sure i have created a blog but dont know how to upload photos to it from my "My Pictures" file. Can anyone help? Thanks Ps I think i have just worked out how to attach a photo to this post. yea! This is a good start! for me!

G'day G'day Just done my routine check on my cactus and have noticed some black scarring aroung the base of a graft i did last week. It seems to be where the graft meets/joined to the stock. I am wondering if this might be a fungus. Unfortunately i dont have a digi cam to give you some pics. Has anyone encountered this prob before? And if it is a fungal infection can you recomend a fungicide or alternate treatment. Cheers.

Hey zee warp, You could be right you know i did do it while it was very humid. I sterilized the scalpel i was using so i dont think it was that. Could i cut off all the damaged area and start again you think? Then chuck it straight in the hot warter cupboard?

Thanks for the advice Ramon. Would it be possible to maybe just come down during the day of the camp and meet a few of you guys. I feel it is a bit too late to camp there with the amount of work that Andy has done organising campsites and all. I would be happy to come down for lunch and a bit of a chin wag though. If this is possible could i get some info on the directions to the site. I can also offer my three seats in my car if anyone needs a lift. I am based it Nerang but can pick up from anywhere on the Goldie.

Hey all, Hope you all have a wicked time on your camping trip next week. Would have loved to come but feel like i am still like a bit of a newbie and would feel a bit out of place. I look forward to having the opportunity of meeting up with some of you guys one day. Unfortunately none of my friends have the same interest in Ethnobotany as me, so i cant really share with them the pleasure i get out of cultivating some of the unusual and exotic plants i have grown to love. Anyway..... have fun, stay safe. Hope the weather turns it on for you! ^_^

Ok, thanks for clearing that up for me. ^_^

Seen quite a few lophs grafted onto pereskiopsis now and im just wondering. Everyone seems to be using seedlings. Is it possilble to achieve the same results with a really small pup from a mother loph?

Cheers guys

Hey everyone, just a quick post to wish all of you a great time over the festive season and new year! My plans are to spend most of the time lazing about the pool and eating some wicked foods, no doubt i will be putting on some xmas kilos this year! Anyway stay safe if you are on the roads and try and stay cool if you are in hotter parts of the world. Best wishes to all!!

Wow thats pretty cool!

Hey guys, Yeah i know some people hate xmas. I am not the Christian type, but i look at xmas as the time of year that you actually want to spend time with your relo's. To me it is not about gifts or going down to the shops to buy the latest thing that has just been advertised on the TV. Xmas is about bringing people together and sharing memories, friendship, happiness. Seriously, i think the spirit of xmas should be expressed in the way you behave and the way you relate to your friends and family and also to complete strangers. It should not be measured by the gift that advertisers make you feel that you are obligated to buy. Commercialism has taken over! We are now judged on the gift we give, instead of being judged on the time we spend with our families and friends. So whatever you are up to, whether it be celebrating the festive season or not, have a good one! Stay safe.

Thanks Jack, I have purchased seeds within Oz before but i am looking at buying some in bulk. Say 100 seeds or so. I want to try my luck at germinating them myself then grafting onto a Pereskiopsis but want to allow for some mortalities as i have never raised them from seed before. There is a seller in the U.K that wants to sell 100 seeds all Lophophora, but there are mixed and many different varieties, some that i have not even heard of before. He is asking 9 pounds for the lot and i thought that it was a good price. Know anywhere i can buy in bulk in Oz?

All the riots that are happening in Cronulla at the moment are pretty disgusting. I am also really dissapointed at the way both the minority aussies and minority lebanese/ ethnic groups have acted. They definately dont depict the Australian muticultural society. It sucks that the aussies involved in this are being labeled as surfers. Fair enough a good percentage of them probably were, but, there were also a lot of rednecks that had travelled from inland just to cause trouble. The average Australin surfing fraternity have always been a group that embraces and respects other cultures while travelling in their search for the perfect wave. We are not responsible for the odd bad apple. I dont think it is fair that all surfers be labeled as " blonde bronzed brainless surfing racists". Being a surfer myself, i would be really pissed off if i was put into this catagory just because i surf and because of what a few other knobs have done. I am a very passionate and proud Australian who works hard to maintain the great aussie dream of freedom, respect and compassion.

Nice grafts man, I attempted my first graft of a Loph to a San pedro the other day. I hope mine are a sucsessful as yours

This is the excerpt out of the "Ancient wisdom of the Chinese tonic herbs" By Ron Teeguarden regarding Li Qing Yuen. He writes "Because of his herbal expertise, Master Li was well known for his amazing vigor and excellent health. Then one day, when he was around 50 years old, while out on a hike, he met a very old man who, in spite of his venerable old age, could out walk Li Qing Yuen. This impressed master Li very much because he believed that brisk walking was both a way to longevity and a sign of inner health. Li Qing Yuen inquired as to the old sage's secret. He was told that if he consumed a 'soup' of Lycium everyday,he would soon attain a new standard of health. Li Qing Yuen did just that and continued to consume the soup daily. "Naturally, he was greatly revered by all those who new him and he had many diciples who followed him. Even at a very old age, his sight was keen and his legs were strong, and he continued to take his daily vigorous walks. One day, he was on a journey through trecherous mountains. In the mountains he met a Taoist hermit who claimed to be five hundred years old. Humbled by the great illumination of the old Toaist, Li Qing Yuen begged the sage to tell him his secrets. The old Taoist, recognising the sincerity of Li, taught him the secrets of Taoist Yoga... " He continued to consume his Lycium soup daily. It is said that master Li also changed his diet so as to consume little meat or root vegetables and limited his consumption of grain. Instead, he lived mainly on steamed aboveground vegetables and herbs. He lived to be 252 years old, in 1930, reportedly after a banquet presented in his honor by a governtment official."

Hi everyone, On the topic of goji juice, My neighbor came around the other day trying to sell this miricle drink to me and my father who suffered a mild heart attack about 18 months ago. He runs a stall at the carrara markets selling it. He could not stop talking about it, and claims that it has changed his life. He dropped off a newsletter a cd and a book called "Goji- The Himilayan health secret" From the worlds leading nutritionist Dr Earl Mindell,R.Ph, M.H., Ph.D. Now, on the back of the newsletter they give you 34 reasons to drink Goji juice everyday! These range from extending your life, losing weight, improving fertility, inhibiting tumor growth, managing and fighting cancer, and even prevent cancer. These are just some of the reasons they give you, there are heaps more. I actually had trouble finding something this drink couldn't fix! This made me very sceptical. They are trying to market this as a cure all and as something that you need to drink everyday! In the book there is also a story of a chinese guy who drank Lycium soup every day since the age of 50 called Li Qing Yuen, who is said to have lived to be 252 years old. They say he was born in 1678 and died in 1930. Apparently there is a book called "The ancient wisdon of the Chinese Tonic herbs", written by Ron Teeguarden who covers this story in his book. I havent seen anything about incredible age in the Guiness book of records though. I just find these claims a little hard to believe, I also think the people marketing this are targeting gulible people. These are just my opinions, and food for thought.

Hi shane 6891, Wow that is a truck load of shooms. Gotta love this rain ehh? Without tryin to be rude or sound like a smart ass I hope there was still some left to re-spore the area for you. I am still relativley new to mycology but learnt a valuable lesson about a year ago. I think i made the mistake of picking most of the cubes in a small paddock on my sisters property and must have picked too many cause i have never seen them there again. I am not sure whether this was a result of me picking too much or something else. So when ever i pick them now i only take what i need and leave quite a few there so next time round i am pretty much garanteed a batch.

Nice!! God bless this rain! I have been quite lucky the last couple of days too. Hope fully santa brings me a digital camera this year so i can put some pics up.

Thanks for that page on grafting it is the most detailed information i have seen as yet. Its time to don the surgical mask and scalpel!! Thanks again.

Hi everyone I am just about to attemp my first ever graft of a loph to a myrtillo cactus and was wondering if anyone has last minute tips or advice or they can share with me to make it sucsessful operation. The loph is about 2cm in diameter and the myrtillo is about a foot high and about 3 1\2 cm to 4 cm in diameter. Any suggestions would be very greatful. Thanks.

Hi all, i was just wondering what the best way to store spores are and how long they will be viable for if kept in the right conditions. Thanks.

I have been in London 4 about a month now and have discovered the wicked Camden markets. I cant belive they openly sell salvia, peyote, san pedro and magic mushrooms at stalls in the street, of course I have taken full advantage of this situation and indulged in the odd shroom or two. They also have these truffles called philosophers stones, they are amazing but very intense. I haven't heard about these before back in oz, have they been around for a while or are they a new discovery? Does anyone now some websites where i might find some more information about these? I tried erowid but couldn't find anything. I'm keen to find out origin, botanical name, spiritual use and how they are harvested. I imagine they would be hard to find because they grow underground. I know they use pigs in some countries to find the restraunt truffles. Any info would be greatly appreciated. P.S. Hope the weather is better over there than what it is here.

I recently have stopped smoking weed, only cause it is too expensive where i am at the moment, and have been having these really weird dreams. It has been about 4 weeks since my last smoke and have been having real vivid dreams about mushies and other stuff. This one particular dream that i remember quite well is where i am out in an totally unfamiliar paddoock with big green rolling hills and absolutely nothing else around, no cows, nothin'. I start walking up the hill and when i get to the top and look down i realise i am surrounded by mushies, unusually big gold tops. I start to collect them franticly until i can hold no more then start back down the hill. This is all i can remember. I dont eat any of the mushies in the dream, which surprises me. Does any one else have these dreams? Or is there any dream interpreters out there that can tell me what this might mean? Are the mushie gods trying to tell me something? :confused:

I was shocked when i read about this tragedy in the paper.What sort of twisted fuck would do something like that! I grew up listening to Pantera through high school and their music helped me through some difficult times. Rest in Peace Darrel and may your music live for eternity!

Yeah i went down to the Medicine Garden nursery to buy some plants. Quite a limited stock and all of the seeds i was after were not available. When you go there it seems like it is just someones over grown back yard. No labels on any of the plants and the green house was falling apart. The guy i spoke to wasn't much help either. I have also visited the SAB nursery and it is much more professional. They had a wide range of plants and were all labelled. The people there were more than willing to help me out. Torsten even met me there when i said i was comeing. I left SAB nursery with everything i wanted and had no dramas with the order i placed through the internet.