I look privileged, middle-aged, white, a woman. I don't look like part of the trusted psychoactive community because I'm not. Many in neat pots that have been grafted or cloned. All in neat rows, some raised up in garden beds. His garden has hundreds and hundreds of plants. Peyote: tiny little button cacti that look like pin cushions. He had a few dud experiences, both brewing and eating it, but learned to choose the right plants and has grown his own ever since. Clouds start to cover the garden and a few spots of rain fall. Today is a meet-the-mescaline-plants day. Some people I've spoken to have had bad reactions such as headaches and dizziness. Sometimes perceptual experiences become enhanced, even euphoric. Mescaline produces altered awareness, a different sense of time passing, and changes to visual experiences. The origin of this clone is unknown but it has spread throughout the world and I am told it is known for being "good food" and having potent mescaline content. He has a forest of san pedros, including what he tells me is called a TBM ( Trichocereus bridgesii monstrose), otherwise called the "penis plant" or frauenglück, meaning "woman's luck" or "happy woman" in German. Graham has a large backyard with a shed and a greenhouse. Let's call him Graham (not his real name). Soon enough, we drive for about 20 minutes to meet Liam's first friend. I have to admit I am extremely excited to see the next two gardens, but I know I can't share their locations or the names of the owners. "Wait until you see the psychoactive gardens I'm about to take you to." "This is nothing," Liam says, as I gaze at all his garden beds and propagation trays. Liam has committed a lot of time and passion to being a crusader for safe and informed cactus care and consumption. He is one of those people whose expertise, experience and knowledge creeps up on you. The result is a cactus candelabra.Īs I follow Liam around his property, I begin to understand that while he presents as a laid-back person with street cred, he also has an extremely sharp eye, and a keen intelligence. I love the native Callistemon brachyandrus in Liam's front yard because he has trimmed back all the branches and on some he has nailed round wood pieces and placed cactus on these little stands. Liam tells me the conditions are perfect for cactus in western Sydney as the temperature often gets up in the high 40s. The back yard has a pool surrounded by more san pedros. It teems with innumerable seed-grown, cloned and grafted plants.
Garden story physical full#
Liam's garden at Emu Plains is abundantly full of san pedros (large cacti, with thick stems), peyotes and false peyotes (but not Pelecyphora aselliformis). Why am I roaming around the suburbs of Sydney seeking out gardens of psychoactive plants? ( Unsplash: Filip Krsmanovich) These seeds grow what some people might call a "false peyote" - a plant that looks similar to and grows in similar habitats to peyote and might be used as a peyote substitute due to its mescaline content. At the moment, Liam particularly wants to find Pelecyphora aselliformis seeds. The team are working on a book about common Australian psilocybin mushrooms. He has spent time in Mexico and South America learning about cactus culture and has a large collection himself, with an even larger propagating garden.Įntheogenesis Australia is the heart of a community where like-minded, research oriented, plant people gather and contribute to education about, and communication of, plant information. Liam works with Entheogenesis Australia an educational entheobotanical and psychedelic non-profit.
The earth smells good and you get the taste for a more rural life. Maybe it's the bigger expanse of sky or the wider street verges. There is something about Emu Plains near Penrith that is more relaxed than the inner city.
So on a cool, rainy day in February 2022, I drove west to the foot of the Blue Mountains to visit Liam Engel. Before I met the cactus expert, I didn't even know psychoactive gardens existed.
0 kommentar(er)
