I read somewhere that ethylene from smoke stimulates the germination of (some species of) Phalaris seeds. It might be worth trying puffing smoke from a bundle of smouldering dry grass onto the seeds. A ripe banana also produces ethylene, you could see if that would help.

Thanks, downwardsfromzero. That is interesting information.

I have done a bioassay of the latest grass (aquatica variety?). The taste was salty instead of sweet. The spirit was very gentle, clear, crispy. Neon colors. Oily and purgative. No side effects. Felt very clean alkaloid wise, my guess is dmt and beta carbolines. Just was weak, i gradually drank 250g worth of fresh blade tea after the rue. I got the intuition the plant is not ready to be harvested yet, that fall leaves will be the real medicine. Could that be true?

İt was really magical... I actually came across a patch in the middle of a pine Forest, exactly where I was called to do a ceremony. I had only found it in one distant, small area so far, it appeared to be rare and this was a surprise. And it's the first time I witness a Phalaris grass grow under pine trees. Notice the erect leaves.

What is your guess of the species, chimp z? There are more photos on the previous page.

Thanks a lot, chimp z.

I assume you got it that the grass photos on the last post of the previous page are of this "aquatica."
İt has magnificent slender flowers as you described the African truncata. İt is definitely rhizomatous, they are always in large clumps, and never occur as single grass. They grow avidly. The first clump i saw was actually right in front of my house. I noticed the wide growth, though it is short, probably not over 50cm. But I later I came across clumps exceeding my height. It is the tallest phalaris i have studied. The flowers also have a large range, i have come across from 3cm long to 16cm... Truncata is not supposed to have so long flowers according to what I have read but perhaps the African variety does, as you described.

The amount of effort I put in harvesting (at dawn), cutting off leaves and boiling up a dose or two (525g fresh) of this grass was phenomenal. The spirit felt very beautiful and workable, if it is found in abundance and somehow the effort can be decreased, i would continue working with it. How much more potent can autumn leaves be than their spring counterparts? Also, i had harvested a substantial amount from very young grass which had not started flowering yet. is that a good phase to harvest from?

But there are other grasses to test also... The canariensis (or brachystachys) on the previous page was active at 10g fresh... I will do experiments with higher amounts.

And there is an endless supply of paradoxa in the vicinity which I am hopeful of.

Fat aquatica also...

All are from the same village except the slender aquatica/truncata which is in a neighboring, higher elevation (500m) mountain village (which happens to be where I live). I would enjoy supplying you with the technical details of each species. A collaborate education it can be 🌿

An exploration in the wider area and I find a landscape full of this aquatica/truncata. Another strain of aquatica, paradoxa, and "angusta" also found in the new location.

When do you guys harvest your phalaris blades? İs it just a matter of high tryptamines or is there a process where the spirit has to mature and be ready for harvest? I am suspecting the latter... But I will continue my spring experiments. So is it simply a matter of "the younger the better" so that I should choose young seedlings without seedheads? İn what phase/period do the tryptamines peak in the Spring?

As far as I understand, arundinacea doesn't dry out in the summer. I read that one was found with a root that went 36m deep! I would expect the perennial rhizomatous species to not dry out in the summer but I have started to see dried out aquaticas... How is the life cycle of aquatica in your area?

After two experiences, my impression on this unique "aquatica" is that it was mostly beta carbolines with trace amounts of dmt. İt was similar to my experience with Alopecurus. Very benign and antidepressant. The brew was so thick it was like San Pedro brew minus the bitterness. İt was not sweet, but more salty like... I suspect that that might be the taste of the grass beta carbolines as Alopecurus had a similar "saltiness."

Now the question is, should I continue experimenting with it to see if there are clumps with higher tryptamine content, or if seasonal factors bring on the goodies.

Arundinacea generally will go dormant in the heat of summer and dry out unless it is growing in shade or wetlands with circulating water.
In my experience, decent harvests cap off around the beginning of June.
Good harvest resumes around the middle-end of August and continues through November.
If the Aquatica is containing beta carbolines wouldn’t it be active on its own?

Please be careful, we don’t know exactly each alkaloid that’s in the grass and many of the compounds in Phalaris have yet to be thoroughly studied.
Aquatica can be hit or miss, Brachystachys and Paradoxa have been more consistent in brews and smoked extracts for me.
We know Aquatica is worthy of perusing, but maybe the grass is telling you to take a step back before you take 3 steps forward.
As we’ve learned, alkaloids diminish with age in the grass so you’ll likely only have to take more and more to satisfy your taste.
If I may suggest finding some new patches and returning to the Aquatica you’ve been working with after the rain comes back.
With Phalaris grass, sometimes luck is at a random time like the beginning of summer or in winter.
Blessings on your plant path. 💜

Aquatica + Arundinacea do have hybrids in existence.
You live in a very unique area where there might be some of the more obscure
phenotypes and subspecies of this grass genus.

Thank you, Chimp Z. I wish I knew that paradoxa is more consistent before. It is the most abundant phalaris I see all around fora month now and they are starting to dry out...

I actually had a dream where I was told to meet paradoxa.

Here are paradoxa from my garden.

Thanks for the call for caution, chimp z. With a new grass species, I start drinking with very small amounts incrementally increasing as I feel safe.

I have tried two aquaticas (regular/average phenotype) from different areas so far, one with a strong result, the other very weak. I am brewing my second harvest of the successful one right now. When I went back to the site, most seemed aging but there were some very young clumps that had just begun flowering also, we'll see how it turns out.

Phenotypically, the difference between the strong and the weak one seems to be that the strong one consistently produces large clumps. I have seen a lot of loner grass among the second variety which I thought is not how aquatica should behave. But both varieties smell and taste the same in brews, and their blades, flowers, and size seem indistinguishable to me. There is also a difference in habitat - the strong one is from a wild grassland, the weaker one from in and around wheat fields.

The unique "aquatica/truncata" (separate from the above mentioned two and found at an elevation) is just so magnificent and beautiful, I would continue my experiments with it if I had time. I suspect it might be a different species altogether but I cannot find any clues. Could it be an unidentified species I wonder. It doesn't look like arundinacea at all to me and I doubt it is a hybrid.

We had some serious rain a few days ago, and now it seems to be getting very hot very fast. It might be close to the deadline of the season.

I thought it is known that phalaris contain beta carbolines. Beta carbolines in a plant can render tryptamines orally active if they are strong mao a inhibitors and in sufficient amounts. Otherwise not. But beta carbolines are not just mao inhibitors, they have unique psychoactivity to themselves. Their common point seems to be that they are modulators, easing, lubricating, balancing the energy, and effects of any other psychoactives...

Below are photos of the first, potent aquatica.

And here is yet another variety of aquatica which I came across recently...

Yes my question about beta carbolines was have you had success with the Aquatica by itself?

Aquatica flowers can get to be 5 or 6 inches sometimes
Do you recall how long the flowers were?
Truncata can get pretty tall too reaching nearly 2 meters during anthesis.
As most botany keys suggest Arundinacea only reaches 7 feet, though I’ve seen it nearly 9 feet tall in the wild.
So the taxonomy is not always exact with the height of the grass and length of the foliage since botanists/taxonomists haven’t seen all the variety of 1 species there is to see. For example, Trichocereus Terscheckii has a wide range of appearances though is considered 1 species.
It is very possible there exists some hybrids of Aquatica/Arundinacea.
There exists an Aquatica-like strain called Phalaris Elongata which is almost exactly like Aquatica in appearance but has hairy glumes and is generally taller and has a longer seed-head.
There’s also the obscure species like P. Comutata which was lumped in with Aquatica.
Many unique species either with limited distribution or often times thought to be synonymous with Aquatica or Arundinacea are P. Caesia, P. Lindigii, P. Maderensis, P. Elongata, P. Stenoptera and P. Rotgesii.
I think environmental conditions make their growth-forms unique and if you grew a lot of the species mentioned above in the same garden, they might all end up looking very similar.

if I have a access to good description and photos of those species, I will compare. Thank you.
I haven't tried drinking any grass by itself yet.

Here are photos of new flowers of the brachystachys İ planted after transplanting to my garden and cutting.

And here is one unidentified species, like a tiny aquatica.

Looks like Brachystachys/Canariensis with ruffled inflorescence getting ready to seed after being pollinated.
Does Phalaris Amerhystina grow in your area?

There is a species of grass in California that is an endemic phenotype of Amethystina known as Phalaris Californica.
It looks a lot like the last pictures. Small grass with spaced out small chubby inflorescence.
More often than not has purple tinged flowers.
I’ve grown Amethystina from Brazil so don’t know if it’s too common in your area.

There aren’t many keys on Amethystina’s appearance, but if you find consistent patches of that grass with ruffled/opened inflorescence and is tiny like Brachystachys it may be Amethystina.

I’m just gonna say it is most likely Canariensis/Brachystachys that’s been disturbed by environmental conditions if it grows near the Brachystachys/Canariensis you’ve already located.

İ completed my experiment with the second harvest of the potent aquatica. 50g fresh with rue was an overdose, both dmt wise and 5 Meo dmt wise... This is dangerous, folks.

I am very grateful to have found this extremely potent plant, but I have learned my lesson about 5 MeO...

İ actually started off with paradoxa, incrementally ingested up to 150 fresh after rue. İt felt active but strangely pulled me towards unconsciousness (I suspect this is the effect of 5 MeO DMT and that this plant has mostly this alkaloid).

After four hours I had my second serving with the aquatica. Last time incrementally drinking a total of 100g fresh appeared as strong but not as an overdose, so I drank 50g straight, after my second dose of rue. İt felt like the humbling of my life (after over a thousand experiences).

The spirit of this aquatica is beautiful and has some valuable attributes - it is clear and intricate, feels like chacruna but also feels more balanced and grounded. İntroverted. The spirit is detached and rational ("Apollonic" comes to my mind) but also with a certain plant "sweetness"/"delicateness" to it. As for gender I am leaning on masculine so far. İt is highly visual. Purple patterns covered everywhere during my od experience... The visuals are well-defined but feel softer than chacruna, the general energy also feels softer as in a bit more rounded and not edgy.

However the 5 MeO DMT and perhaps hordenine make it tricky and potentially dangerous. 5 meo makes you unconscious; I felt I am sure I don't want this molecule in the medicine. And the blood pressure spikes seriously with maoi... The amount of power rippling through my body was insane. I think almost anybody else in my place would have been seriously traumatized. Physical death never felt so imminent before... Some lesson(s)...

I feel fine and even very balanced and grounded with a unique afterglow since the end of the experience. The spirit of the grass dominated the rue and this continues in the afterglow, less loving feminine energy, more objective, no-bullshit energy.

This aquatica, which I shall call "Aquatica 1" for now (not to be confused with "AQ1" ), is an extremely potent alkaloid producer. İf 50g fresh equals 10g dry, it is on par with acacia confusa or jurema (I normally get full blown, sufficient effects from 3g acacia confusa) İf it makes 5g fresh, it even surpasses those plants.

is it workable in a safe way, time will tell.

Thanks for your trials and reporting dithyramb.

A grass noob question and sorry if I missed it before: is fresh or dried grass different? I would think not as the traditional leaves of S.America are also dried.

Hey Jees, thanks for reading.

It is said that enzymatic processes substantially decrease the potency of grass in regular drying. However I have read that a quick oven dry may bypass this effect.

The spirit of fresh plant is always more alive.

Dithyramb, how do you know it's hordenine and 5-MeO-DMT?
Have you thought of getting your plants tested?


I don't know about that. I know that in a major Santo Daime community in Brazil they use fresh leaves.