Just yesterday, I made my way to the spot where they are natively found (100's of recorded specimen within a 10km area), a 3.5 hour drive each way, mind you.
I took samples of what I believed to be Burkittii.
There were 2 different types (one of those types had a tree and a shrub form. I took samples of both).
Type 1- No tree form, only small or large shrub.
- Phyllodes appeared narrower, and more cylindrical.
- Cylindrical hard balls, some were spiked, up to around 2cm in diameter attached.
Hard balls. I believe they are old as many looked quite dead.
Type 2- Has a tree and a shrub form.
- Phyllodes appear slightly larger in diameter, and were sort of flat along one side.
- Not sure what these are, but there were like these 4 sided chestnut type objects attached.
Both phyllode`s tasted quite bitter, and looked near identical.
I wish to use this thread to track the progress of my extraction, allowing other users to chime in with their advice.
My initial aim is to test for any alkaloids, with no real concern or aim of high yields.
Once I have determined alkaloids in a specific sample, then I will completely dry, powder and perform 4 X acid boils etc.
I have currently finished Step 2 of the following Tek, for both Type 1 and Type 2 (tree form).
I will complete the later steps this evening.
Initial RunMy method is the same for Type 1 and 2.
Step 1 (blending):Blend the material as fine as I can. I couldn't get it too fine, as it was still a bit wet.
However, the phyllode`s are chopped, and already had a diameter a mm or so.
Even if I miss 50% of the alkaloids due to this rushed approach, that is satisfactory.
Step 2 (boiling): Perform 2 acid boils, each an hour long. Add 250g of freshly chopped plant matter with 2000mls of water and 110mls of vinegar.
I then combined and reduced to ~750mls, then cooled the solution.
Step 3 (basing): Create a basic solution by mixing a minimal amount of water in a separate glass jug to dissolve ~125g of Sodium Hydroxide.
Once the exothermic reaction has occurred, cool it down, and slowly add to the reduced acidic soup.
Step 4 (pulling): Once cooled, add liquid to a mixing vessel, and then add 200mls of shellite.
Mix gently, but not vigerously, to prevent emulsion forming.
The pull of the naptha.
Step 5 (praying): Pray and hope that the naphtha is cloudy and evaporates to yield active product, rather than 30mg of plant goop.
This is a Work in progress and I will be amending my initial post with further details and pictures tonight.
PICTURES:First 3 are of Type 1, last 2 are of Type 2.
It may be hard to see the tips, but it`s much easier in person.
shanedudddy2 attached the following image(s):
Type1_Tree.JPG
(4,726kb) downloaded 256 time(s). Type1_Spike.JPG
(3,750kb) downloaded 250 time(s). Type1_Seeds.JPG
(3,936kb) downloaded 247 time(s). Type2_Tree.JPG
(5,971kb) downloaded 246 time(s). Type2_Spike.JPG
(4,637kb) downloaded 250 time(s).