cannabis look-alikes

[Coquero]

I've noticed these native plants that grow on granite outcrops in the SW of Western Australia. The younger plants look very similar to cannabis.

Anyone know anything about them?

[mr b.caapi]

do you have a pic?? or maybe a brief discription?

[Rev]

hmmm. not around yalingup by chance?

If so probabli IS cannabis :D

Lupins? Cassava? Leonurus sibiricus?

[Coquero]

I'll see if I can get a photo.. I think they die off a bit about this time of year. The only place I've ever seen them is in the crevices of granite outcrops.

They would make a very interesting "pot plant"

[Fractalhead]

Hmmm... yeah i think i might know the ones you mean. Down near the carpark at the base of the Monkey Rock (a big granite outcrop) walk trail in Denmark SW WA, there are along the walk trail, these plants that at first glance look remarkably similar. The colour, shape, texture, and serration of the leaves make them a good lookalike. Unfortunately, i couldn't smell anything interesting about them. Still, would probably make a nice 'decoy' patch. How a garden bed full of these things with marigolds, leonurus, cassava, and lupins thrown in for extra confusion.

[Anodyne]

Not "Stinking Roger"? (although I've only seen that along roadsides, and it's really not all THAT similar - though I have heard of idiots picking and drying it )

[Coquero]

Fractalhead.. They are the exact ones I am talking about! and the same location too. But being in denmark I dont think anyone would be too surpised if they were actually the real thing

[Fractalhead]

LOL. Well how about that. I haven't been to monkey rock for a good 4~5 yrs but they are still there! I've always been meaning to go back and grab some. The Leucopogon verticillatus that grows around there used to remind me of pot once. Not sure why. They don't look anything like it. Hey, if you get a chance, explore the heritage trail that runs along the inlet starting from the bridge at the Rivermouth Caravan Park. If you are at the caravan park, head away from town across the bridge and keep walking. It is approaching prime mushy time (no Psilocybes) at the moment and that walk trail is usually loaded with all kinds of funky fungi when there is a bit of rain around in autumn. If you can find any blue-staining bolete mushrooms on the path please pick and save some for me so i can eventually run some chemical analyses on them. I've had some weird experiences on that trail (naively) munching any old (non-Amanita, non-Russula) fungus. Tried some weird slimey golden blue coloured Cortinarius sp. after being told stories by locals. Definitely did something (probably including liver damage). Also the blue-staining bolete might have similar chemistry to the Boletus manicus and Phaeogyroporous sp. that are used as hallucinogens in various parts of the world. The blue staining bolete is a big chunky smooth light brown mushroom with a big fat stem (forget the proper terminology) and pores instead of gills - the main determining feature apart from this is the fact that when you break it open, the off-white flesh changes colour almost instantaneously to bright blue. Its worth finding just for the colour change.

[Coquero]

Well Fractalhead, I might go and do that for you. I've noticed all sorts of mushrooms coming up on our farm lately after the last bit of rain.

We have masses of these big horrible slimy golden brown topped mushrooms that come up every year. Underneath they are yellow and have pores. Are these usefull for anything?

[Fractalhead]

Well they definitely sound like a member of the Boletales group. Have you broken any of them open to look for a colour change? There are some Boletes that grow around conifers (pine trees etc) down there and have yellow pores and pale yellowish marshmellow like flesh inside. They are related and look similar to the blue-staining ones so they might be useful for something. You can eat some Boletus spp. (including the famous Boletus edulis). I'm interested in any fungi growing down there. There are some mycology books at the Denmark library. If you learn how to collect proper specimens, I would seriously be willing to trade plants and seed for all the species you can find, collect and preserve. I've been wanting to seriously collect fungi down there for ages but never get a chance.

Cheers,

Fractal

[Rev]

Those 'horrible slimey' things are probably Suillus sp. if theyre under Pines - and denmark is full of both.

They are quite edible (just peel or scrape off the slimey cap)

Im also keen on a print or dried specimens of 2 sp comon around there

Macrolepiota konradii

and

Pleurotus australis

The former i collected under casaurina Duff but its found elsewhere - quite edible too - a brown parasol mushroom on a long stalk with a detached annulus - i have print and an old culture but more material would be excellent

The other is the native oyster and can be common on damaged Peppermint trees (Agonis sp.)

It also adapts well to straw and exotic woods.

It seems to be locally abundant in scattered localities as far north as Mandurah.

Youll also find Fistulina hepatica - Beefsteak fungus around there as a wound parasite of Jarrah.

And some massive Ganoderma australe on Karri and the occassional Acacia.

Turkey tails (Trametes versicolor) are also found on Karri logs.

Theres also some cool Red capped Agaricus which are edible - this one i collected but lost.

Denmark is fantastic for shrooms!

I also innoculated some of the damaged exotics down by the river (poplar, oak , willow) with Shiitake and shimeji - i wonder if they took

It was an afterthought with some old sawdust spawn.

[Coquero]

Well we've just had a big downpour here last night, so the shrooms should start popping up again soon.

At the moment I can collect:

-Ganoderma australe (some big ones - tree has just fallen over, fungus still alive though)

-Most of the tree fungus - including the orange jelly stuff!

-Macrolepiota konradii

-Pleurotus australis (think I seen one once, but may have trouble finding another)

-"horrible slimey things" under pine trees

I just need info on how to collect / preserve or make spore prints properly.

[Coquero]

[ 03. December 2003, 10:05: Message edited by: sw ]

[Rev]

Prints are easy.

Wild prints can be useful as ID material and sometimes as growing material (clones are better to start with in a lot of cases)

You can either use alfoil or plain paper - or really anything thats on hand - a dirty print is of more scientific value than no print

Decapitate the mushroom, one tha looks mature but not old, and places on the sheet

Cover this with a glass or anything at all to slow down the drying out of tehcap and in the case of needing clean prints it does stop mould spores settling on the paper

Leave about 12 hours and check by looking under the cap

A coloured deposition should be visible - some dont start for longer , some are very heavy and others very light even within the same collection

Apparently refrigerated secimens drop far fewer spores (stamets), ive found this to be fairly accurate.

Once you have noticeable deposition remove the cap and put on a new piece of paper

You do this for backups and because many wild mushrooms are full of maggots and they can quickly spoil and bleed juice all over the print adding greatly to the contaminant load.

Put the print under another glass to dry off for a while then fold and place in a Zip lock bag with the name of species and collector, locality, date and any other notes - such as surrounding vegetation and aspect.

And thats it for wild prints.

The free spore ring Europe has a nice writeup on making (semi-)sterile prints for cultivation.

[Shamanorrhea]

It's hard to say unless you have a picture or something that we can identify it from.

That aside, here's a plant I wouldn't mind getting my hands on :D

http://plants.usda.gov/cgi_bin/plant_profi...gi?symbol=EUCA9

[t st tantra]

my previous hemp agrimony died and i am re-establishing it at the moment.it seems to die back after flowering late summer,starts again in autumn,stops in winter then takes off in spring.

i should have plants available next autumn.i prefer to send them when still young,before the appearance is too hempy.usually propagated by division.

smoking small amounts has produced mild effects,once it seemed there was definately some psychoactive visuals beginning,other times it seemed similar to thujone containing plants.

t s t .

[theobromos]

Hibiscus cannabinum fields have been pillaged by hopeful but botanically inept heads. There is a Datiscus cannabinum as well, I think.

[Darklight]

theobromos:

Hibiscus cannabinum fields have been pillaged by hopeful but botanically inept heads.

Including occasionally the police. From:

http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v03.n1370.a07.html

'Pot' Plants Are Actually Deer Food, Landowner Says

HARRISON COUNTY - Narcotics officers who seized more than 500 suspicious plants on Monday might have had their first encounter with a plant that

looks like marijuana, but isn't.

The man who claims he planted them at a hunting camp off Herman Ladner Road said they're kenaf, a high-protein plant that attracts deer and increases their size. He's angry, and he blames the Harrison County sheriff for tearing up the land and destroying his investment.

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Dunno if that's an easy mistake to make, from the photos they look pretty different

[Guest d0tb0y]

If anyone has that cannabinum plant, i'd like a cutting or seeds.