“More than you need to know?” Chapter Three The reported occurrences of mescaline Trichocereus peruvianus P.C.Hutchison 543 Collected in the canyon of the Río Rímac, Huarochiri Prov., Peru. 1700m. 93 Sacred Cacti 3rd ed. Lophophora williamsii echinata and Trichocereus bridgesii SSO2 94 Chapter 3: The mescaline containing species The Distribution & Occurrence of Mescaline Readers will quickly notice that the following section is weak or potent have on occasion proved to be just the lacking the entries for the Trichocereus species. opposite!] These now form another book: San Pedro & related Often the only data included is whether the plant was Trichocereus species. ie Sacred Cacti Part B. cultivated or collected from the wild. In many early papers We hope that the splitting of this work into separate books we literally have to rely on the word of the workers as to the does not cause our readers too much inconvenience. We identity of what they analyzed, as vouchers for reference’s suspect they will enjoy the benefits which the expansion sake were never prepared and there is no physical means permitted and think that these offset the disadvantages. for confirmation. In the section which follows, most taxonomic synonyms Fortunately, in recent decades, far more attention is being were omitted as these are readily available in the sources given to the importance of proper herbarium vouchers being cited and are primarily only of historical importance. (More prepared for any and all plant analysis. Even in these cases, detailed and ‘properly’ worded taxonomic descriptions of the not all workers note enough variables for their observations plants can be found in the listed references.) to be truly meaningful. To better assist the reader in search of more information Size and approximate age, part of plant used and stage it was thought helpful to include synonyms that are in of growth, i.e. actively gowing versus fully developed horticultural use or used in the references included. (if sampling only branches of large specimens), and time Many times plants get renamed or transferred by one of harvest (time of year and time of day) should all be authority without being accepted by some or most others. considered to be critical data to include along with place In some cases, such as Stenocereus, it is not uncommon to of origin. find several different names for the same plant depending on Ideally for a voucher some comments on the local ecology which reference work one consults. While it is unlikely that and a description of habitat would also be quite valuable. they would be encountered and still referred to as a Cereus, This could include the plants growing around it, or with it, as many cereoids were originally called, it is just as likely the immediate local conditions of occurrence [moisture, they will not be listed by MOST sources as a Stenocereus. degree of sun, etc...], its apparent niche in ecosystem, and a It is hoped that the reader will find the following chapter description of the land or terrain. helpful; any feedback on how this could be made more useful Even better would be additionally including a local soil is welcomed. test and/or sample, and analyzing as many parts and ages of Proviso: material as possible, as well as repeated tests with the same It must be kept in mind that substantial differences in specimens at different times of year. the alkaloid content and in the relative ratios of alkaloids If performing repeated samplings of the same individuals; present have been noted by numerous researchers. (True stress can become a factor capable of influencing the results. also in many families.) These differences have been noted I suggest initially using pooled smaller samples of adjacent to sometimes appear seasonally, such as the higher presence individuals within a given population. There should be of N-methylated (as compared to N-demethylated) alkaloids additional small samples taken from several individuals detected, by Lundstrom, during summer in greenhouse within the same population that is pooled in order to check maintained peyote. In contrast; in the same population of uniformity. plants, winter analysis found levels of N-demethylated Most plants can recover rapidly and well from light compounds to be higher than N-methylated ones. [While he prunings. A minimum of two years time is suggested for such used cultivated plants, the mescaline content was comparable a series of samplings with a maximum of 6-8 trimmings. to most of what is collected from the wild.] Differences in regrowth versus original growth should also They can vary as well according to the age of plant (young be evaluated. plant versus adult plant) or even by age of part (such as new The factors controlling and regulating alkaloid production growth on a large adult compared to older growth). In cacti, the would be a fascinating and productive area for future actual variables effecting such reports are, usually, unknown academic research. If chemotaxonomy is to ever be and unstudied. considered a truly useful inclusion in the repertoire of Alkaloid content has been noticed to vary substantially in taxonomic tools, we must be able to better define the amount and/or actual even composition between varieties parameters of alkaloid production. considered closely related by morphology, and concentrations Determining and taking steps to maximize alkaloid content sometimes vary widely even from one individual or locality would also be of benefit for those who view these plants to the next. In others even daily fluctuations have been as sacraments. Selection for known high alkaloid strains, noted; in Phalaris and Papaver, for example, alkaloid or focusing on clones of specific exceptional individuals, concentrations were found to be highest in the early morning. for intensive large scale breeding and propagation efforts, (Quantitative comparative isolations of Phalaris was reported would be a worthwhile avenue for everyone involved with by APPLESEED.) sacramental use of these plants. Very few workers seem to concern themselves with any of this and rigorous work on this subject has rarely been performed or published. [Species suggested by published analysis to be variously 95 Sacred Cacti 3rd ed. a thirsty Opuntia ficus-indica growing in Australia 96 Chapter 3: The mescaline containing species The reported distribution of mescaline containing species within the family CACTACEAE Nonbold face specific names indicate acceptance as a species is still not widely recognized. Family: CACTACEAE Subfamily: CEREOIDEAE subtribe ECHINOCACTINAE Tribe PERESKIEAE- Aztekium ritteri Pereskia corrugata Gymnocalycium achirasense Pereskia tampicana Gymnocalycium asterium Tribe OPUNTIEAE- Gymnocalycium baldianum Pereskiopsis scandens Gymnocalycium calochlorum subtribe CYLINDROPUNTIA Gymnocalycium carminanthum Opuntia acanthocarpa Gymnocalycium comarapense Opuntia echinocarpa Gymnocalycium denudatum Opuntia imbricata Gymnocalycium gibbosum Opuntia spinosior Gymnocalycium horridispinum subtribe OPUNTIA Gymnocalycium leeanum Opuntia basilaris Gymnocalycium mesopotamicum Opuntia ficus-indica Gymnocalycium monvillei Tribe CACTEAE- Gymnocalycium moserianum subtribe CACTINAE Gymnocalycium netrelianum Pelecyphora aselliformis Gymnocalycium nigriareolatum subtribe CEREINAE Gymnocalycium oenanthemum Polaskia chende Gymnocalycium paraguayense Pterocereus gaumeri Gymnocalycium quehlianum Stenocereus beneckei Gymnocalycium ragonesii Stenocereus eruca Gymnocalycium riograndense Stenocereus stellatus Gymnocalycium stellatum Stenocereus treleasei Gymnocalycium striglianum Stetsonia coryne Gymnocalycium triacanthum Trichocereus bridgesii ***(all forms*) Gymnocalycium uebelmannianum Trichocereus bridgesii monstrosus *** Gymnocalycium valnicekianum Trichocereus cuzcoensis *** [Often 0. See its entry.] Gymnocalycium vatteri Trichocereus fulvilanus Islaya minor Trichocereus huanucoensis * Lophophora diffusa *** (but not usual case) Trichocereus macrogonus *** Lophophora fricii *** [Does not appear to be typical.] Trichocereus pachanoi *** Lophophora jourdaniana *** Trichocereus pachanoi monstrosus * Lophophora koehresii Trichocereus pallarensis *** Lophophora williamsii williamsii *** Trichocereus peruvianus *** Lophophora williamsii echinata *** Trichocereus peruvianus monstrosus * Turbinicarpus lophophoroides Trichocereus puquiensis *** Turbinicarpus pseudomacrochele var. krainzianus Trichocereus puquiensis monstrosus * Turbinicarpus schmiedickianus var. flaviflorus Trichocereus santaensis *** Turbinicarpus schmiedickianus var. schwarzii Trichocereus schoenii *** Trichocereus scopulicola *** Please note that this system of organization is presently no longer accepted by most authorities but it is still commonly encountered in horticulture and Trichocereus sp. W.BAKER 5452 ** among ethnobotanists. Trichocereus cv. SS01, SS02, SS03 * However, the genus Trichocereus was resurrected by Albesiano & Trichocereus cv. TJG *** Kiesling in 2011 and all of the molecular work to-date indicates that they Trichocereus sp. TORRES & TORRES: N. Chile * are on solid ground. See elsewhere in this work for more details. Trichocereus cv. “Unknown C” * Trichocereus sp. aff. huanucoensis * Most of the species listed contain only trace amounts. Trichocereus strigosus Species marked * lack formally published analytical work but have Trichocereus taquimbalensis * successful human bioassays reported. Trichocereus terscheckii *** Species marked ** have unpublished analytical work confirming mescaline’s presence as