First of all, thank you very much amazing people on the nexus. So many great minds and hearts working together here! I have been reading here for a couple of years, and lately my interest has focused on the spirit of phalaris. After having read (or so I feel) everything there is on this plant at least once, and being greatly inspired by Jamie's "phalaris teacher." thread, I decided to make my own. This is also a kind of hybrid introduction essay, so don't expect great results just yet.

I have some experience with different psychedelics over the last few years, and the changes they had on my view of life and general well being is a chapter in itself. Its still an ongoing journey with new twists and turns along the way. Wanting to experiment with growing a magic containing plant and getting to know it in depth I ordered a small amount phalaris brachystachys seeds last summer.

They germinated easy with the "cover-with-plastic-bag" trick, and grew nicely in my windowsill for some months before turning light brown (annual plant). But before that it produced many seeds that was harvested by whipping the seedpods lightly over a plastic cup.

Eager to try these new seeds i started a new grow with some of them this winter, but its harder to grow now due to the lack of light and getting too cold too close to the window...It will be interesting to see if it survives, most blades are ca 8 cm, but some die and or hang down low. Some new sprouts growing up too. Keeping the heat 20-24 degrees celcius.

Will update this if I get some new information on the subject, do an interesting bioassay, take some pictures, or any other updates for this work in progress thread.

(On the controversy regarding gramine:
Found this article, first in both german and english but now it seems to only be there in german. Maybe g00gletranslate will help you get the basics. It says, among other things, thats gramine is a found in many common foods too, and it concludes with that its not toxic. Don't know how trustworthy this source is, but please have a look:
German: http://psychotropicon.in...e-pflanzeninhaltsstoffe/
G00gletrans: http://translate.google....pflanzeninhaltsstoffe%2F )

Thats all for now!

re: gramine, endlessness did an analysis that found gramine was negligibly soluble in limonene, and insoluble in naphtha.
so even if it were toxic, it wouldn't be an issue, because it wouldn't end up in most extracts... and even if it did, a simple re-x would probably take care of it

Gramine is not particularly toxic, but the jury is still out on it being unpleasant.

it seems to be a non-issue with most extractions as noted above

Thanks for the replies. Yes I also read about that trick to remove gramine. I don't have much experience extracting, but I wonder if vegetable oil also can be used to remove it?

Although not rushing things here, im interested in oral administration maybe in the future. Not knowing if it contains 5-meo, one would have to start with very low doses and not touch any MAOIs. And if gramine is unpleasant, remove that before ingesting. Will have to find a willing fantasy creature to do this kind of stuff.

Im also in contact with the vendor regarding if phalaris has any traditional use where it was harvested (europe). He will ask the harvesters for me. If there was any ancient use, or if we really are on the forefront researching this species. Regardless of this its so cool finding safe and good ways to use this potentially very teaching plant.

For now, just taking small clippings and putting them in the freezer. And trying to get more pots going, then when the small zip-lock bag is full, freeze/thaw, blend, filter and see if remaining dried juice is somewhat active. That's my plan for now, later it can get more complicated.

Here are some pictures, first one is last summers container, with some new growth happening and some old stems still visible from last year. Second is the one I tried to start in the middle of winter, most of them died in the middle due to cold, but now new growth started around the edges. Last one is the latest, still only one blade per stem.

Quick update/dream log:
Made two more containers with the left over brachystachys seeds, they are coming along nicely.

After collecting about half or so of a not so big zip-lock bag with grass clippings and storing them in the freezer, they where taken out and blended with water, after freeze thawing a couple of times. Some of this juice was filtered through a coffee filter, and evaporated down in a hot water bath. The rest of the juice placed again inside freezer for further experimentation. An unknown amount of the resulting tar was tried nasally, with not much of an effect.

Now the remaining tar/goo was weighted, about 0.060. It was then mixed with some drops vinegar and water on a spoon, and evaporated with torch lighter and a small candle. An unknown amount of young dried nettles was used for wiping the spoon clean.

Then, rolling a small cigarette with only nettle+goo (about 60-70% of the mix was used), smoked in the sun, very weak but not without effects. Felt relaxed and small tingling around the top of the head was felt. Meditated on this feeling for some time. No toxic side effects where noticed.

Today, rest of the nettle+goo was weighted as 0.164 material, this was placed inside a clean chillum. After slowly and carefully burning all the matter, the warmth/small tingling was again felt on the forehead and laying back it intensified in the "third-eye region". No visuals, some energy movement in the body. very weak effects. Still some sensation on the forehead about an hour later. Felt clean, no allergic reactions this time either.

Thoughts about this dream:
I am more sure now, than before, that there is some activity going on inside this grass, although barley threshold i'm pretty sure this was more than just placebo effect. It did not hit immediately, but came creeping over a few minutes. Next time a larger, and weighted dose might occur in this dream. I'm happy there was something to report, even with this small amount of grass-goo. And that no bad reactions where felt. With a stronger mix of less nettle and more goo, this dreamer can say for sure if this is worthwhile further exploration.

a good read skogen, i was interested in a dmt-containing teacher plant which would grow fine in the cooler climates of scotland and was pointed in the direction of P. Brachystachys, I am now ceratin now that i will be ordering some seeds to add to my magic garden, I am currently just a beginner in growing teacher plants but i plan to gain as much knowledge as possible as i have always been pretty green fingered when it comes to various strains of weed.
Thanks and peace be with you

Hello there terrymcniven! Thank you for your comment. They are for sure easy to grow, and I have had very little problem growing them without much previous indoor plant growing experience. From my research I believe they (or this "strain" at least) are from north Portugal and supposedly love water and moisture. Currently I'm experimenting with a big tray-like container, with some holes in it, and placed inside an identical container. So maybe only just about 3 inches soil and sand. But before I use more, like 6-7 inches soil. The roots will grow through the holes in the container, and I water them by putting water inside the bottom container and letting it soak up, through the roots. I tried to mimic a swamp or wetland, and my inspiration was a kind of hydroponic way of watering the roots, but with soil. They seem to like this way of watering, and are growing happy for the moment. I let them dry out in between, to prevent mold on top soil, and for stressing them.

(and yeah, when small, from seed to like one blade per stem, its all about humidity tent and misting, this will give them a good start).

Sometimes I do clippings, the grass that has been trimmed gets more pale, and more "springy" feeling, if this is an indicator of more magic being made inside the plant, I don't know. Sometimes I put a fan on them, more often I just open the windows (summertime) and let them dance for a little bit.

WARNING:
I have no clue what this plant contains or if it is toxic in larger doses. My goal is not to get some clean n,n-spice, if even this molecule exist within its chemical makeup. The point is just to get a "feel" for this particular type of grass, and learn about them by living with them and observing their lifespan. They might contain some interesting secrets, but what they are only chromatography or something similar can tell...

(This pet dragon of mines says he likes brachystachys vibe, they are some cool small green warriors, they give him inspiration in though times)

peace