Welcome to the notorious Lophophora williamsii, popularly known as peyote, the priceless cactus.
You may learn how to care for your favorite plants, including lophophora, trichocereus, astrophytum, ariocarpus, aloe vera, and carnivorous plants, as well as how to cultivate a peyote cactus from seed here.
Helping, saving, conserving, and preserving lophophorawilliamsii and all endangered species is the major goal of our project. Only for ornamental purposes and to preserve endangered species, we sell plants and seeds. We provide information on native American Indian culture, but we do not promote drinking because it is harmful to one’s health and may be illegal in some jurisdictions.
Our goal is to educate people, share our excitement, and discourage them from harming such stunning plants, which could result in their early extinction.
We must take action to safeguard the peyote cactus, namely the lophophorawilliamsii, in order for it to continue existing in the wild. Even while we can’t stop all human activity, we can start to protect them by cultivating some in our own homes. This way, at least some lophophora will survive and can eventually be released into the wild.
Only recently obtained lophophora williamsii seeds and healthy peyote plants are offered in our store. In order to ensure the maximum possible germination rate, we only offer recently harvested seeds and occasionally various types. We are not a wholesaler.
You will receive more seeds than you anticipated because every order is handled by hand. Since it is becoming increasingly challenging to obtain documentation from the agriculture department and we find it quite upsetting when a plant is intercepted and destroyed by customs, we no longer recommend the sale of large cactus plants, particularly lophophora.
The phytosanitary records, however, are only accessible under certain circumstances, they take time to produce, and they might not be accessible for all nations.
We carefully conceal the lophophora seeds before shipping to ensure that all of the upcoming baby peyote cacti make it to their new location.
Yes, we do transport lophophora seeds and plants to the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe. We ship virtually WORLDWIDE in a discrete manner.
All transactions are very securely secured with 256 bits. Our website is secure against hackers, and payments are handled by a third party processor that is widely recognized.
Can you purchase peyote cactus in the US?
Salvador Johnson, a payote vendor, is holding two peyote buttons. On his property, he owns an additional 80,000 or so.
South Texas is regarded as “brush country” ecologically.
There are numerous prickly trees, shrubs, and palms there. Its humid environment makes it akin to some regions of Northern Mexico, and these two locations are the only ones where you can find peyotegenus Lophophorais, a little cactus that is unique to the Rio Grande Valley and has generated some controversy. Native American civilizations have been using it as a religious sacrament in ceremonies for ages. It includes the hallucinogenic chemical mescaline. However, selling it is prohibited in all states other than Texas, where it is grown.
In order to sell peyote in Texas, one must first register with the Texas Department of Public Safety and then the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Every year, they must renew their license and disclose the quantity of wild peyote they have harvested. Salvador Johnson is one of Texas’s four authorized peyote distributors at the moment.
“I’ll turn 72 in a little over three weeks. Johnson claims, “But I’m still harvesting peyote, so I’m still going strong, and I still feel youthful.
Johnson resides in Mirando City, a small village east of Laredo that has less than 200 residents. He has spent the majority of his life there. In 1966, the year Johnson received his high school diploma, he enlisted in the Air Force and was sent to Vietnam. He replicated his father’s actions when he returned home.
“My father had returned to Mirando and was still alive. For almost 18 years, he was a peyote dealer. I returned here and applied for my license before starting to sell peyote. Since then, I’ve been doing it, Johnson claims.
Distributors like Salvador Johnson are only permitted to distribute peyote to Native American Church members who have registered as members of their organization. Church members need to show proof of ancestry in order to purchase it.
You must be at least one-fourth [American] Indian to purchase peyote in the state of Texas or possess peyote in the state of Texas, according to Johnson. “The most important document for a person to have is what we call the Certificate of Indian Blood, because that will show you who you are, who your parents are, and your blood quarter.
People who fit these criteria travel to the Valley from all across the country to purchase peyote, or “medicine” as church members refer to it. One of them is James Flaming Eagle Mooney.
“I see it as a picture of God, symbolically speaking. According to Mooney, it is essentially a truth ceremony that reveals your identity and holiness.
Johnson has known Mooney for ten years.
She was formerly in charge of the Native American Church’s Oklevueha branch.
“I think there’s no other way for a certain group of people to approach God; this is the only method, in my opinion. Without this peyote, this religion could never survive, according to Mooney.
A tiny, spherical cactus, peyote. Although it lacks thorns, it has peculiar qualities that make it a particularly robust species. The root can gradually sprout a new button if you cut the so-called “button,” which is utilized in rituals. Even so, wild peyote use is declining. The International Union for Conservation of Nature said that over the last 20 years, there has been at least a 30% reduction.
Martin Terry, a professor of botany at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, claims that we are excessively exploiting the wild peyote that still exists on a portion of the world that is rapidly declining.
Terry has spent thirty years researching peyote. He claims that because Texas forbids the production of peyote, overharvesting occurs.
“What is the rationale for this? Why can’t it be grown? You should definitely ask that question of any Texas lawmakers you come across in the near future, Terry advises.
Since the Spanish arrived on these shores, peyote users have been persecuted, and the Drug Enforcement Administration still does so now, according to Terry.
Members of the Native American Church like Mooney claim that these laws have been utilized to oppress their people.
People must realize that the law had to deal with peyote in the sense that it was a sacrament that the indigenous peoples of North and South America had constantly practiced since before the advent of written history, according to Mooney.
Peyote is classified by the DEA as a Schedule I controlled substance, the same as heroin or LSD. Distributors, consumers, and scientists like Terry, however, contend that it poses no significant health risks to people.
“People that use peyote ceremonially, say once a month or so, which is roughly how the ceremonies are spaced out, are completely safe as long as they utilize it correctly and in accordance with traditional methods. Despite this, Terry claims that governments still list it under Schedule I substances since there isn’t any proof that it has any negative consequences.
Peyote grows and is used in the Mexican state of San Luis Potos, where Johnson, the peyote distributor, has family ties. Selling it is something of a family tradition for him because he took over the company from his father and wants it to last after him.
“Either one of my daughters, my son, or my grandsons will most likely take over the company I have. But according to Johnson, it must come from the bottom of your heart.
Can I keep a peyote cactus at home?
California’s Health & Safety Code 11363 HS forbids the cultivation, harvesting, drying, and processing of the hallucinogenic peyote (mescaline). A violation is a wobbler infraction, which means it can be prosecuted as either a felony or a misdemeanor.
If convicted of a misdemeanor, the following penalties apply:
- imprisonment for up to a year in the county jail; or,
- a $1,000 maximum fine.
If proven to be a felony, the following penalties apply:
- incarceration for up to three years in a California state jail; alternatively,
- a $10,000 maximum fine.
PC 11363 provides for legal defenses for individuals accused. The “mistake of fact” defense is one of these.
Where is peyote available in the United States?
Peyote (Lophophora williamsii), a type of hallucinogenic cactus also known as mescal button (family Cactaceae). Only limestone soils in the Chihuahuan Desert in southern Texas and northern Mexico contain peyote.
The body of the peyote cactus is soft, spineless, and, in most cases, blue-green to gray-green in color. It measures an average of eight centimeters (three inches) in width and five centimeters (two inches) in height. It can take a plant 1030 years to develop and blossom because to its extremely slow growth. It blooms in the summer with pink to white flowers, and the fruit matures the following year.
Is peyote cultivation permitted in California?
Peyote is a hallucinogenic plant that is used recreationally and also plays a significant role in several Native American religious rituals. Although cultivating peyote is a major criminal felony under California Health & Safety Code Section 11363 HSC, there may be some acceptable uses for the drug. If found guilty, the law may impose severe penalties.
The following requirements must be met in order to establish the defendant’s culpability of growing peyote:
- Peyote was grown, harvested, dried, or otherwise processed by the defendant (Lophophora)
- AND the defendant was aware that the plant in question, or a portion of it, was a peyote plant.
Peyote cultivation and usage are permitted under various state and federal laws for specific Native American religious rites, however California does not recognize this exception. Therefore, even if it is meant to be used for religious rites that are legal in other states, the growing of peyote is prohibited in California.
In Mexico, is peyote legal?
Since the publication of Carlos Castaneda’s “The Teachings of Don Juan,” visitors have been traveling to Mexico to harvest the Lophophora Williamsii cactus, also known as Peyote, illegally. The Wixrika, also known as Huichol Indians, depend on the Mexican government to safeguard the Peyote that grows along the trail that the Wixrika take in order to perform their sacred rites. The Wixrika also use Lophophora Williamsii in ceremonial form.
Tourists in Mexico Are Putting Peyote At Risk
Since it is forbidden for anybody who is not a member of the Wixrika tribe to harvest and use peyote in Mexico, many tour guides accompany tourists to locations where the cactus thrives so they can gather it without providing any guidance on how to do so sustainably. The main factor putting Lophophora Williamsii at risk of overharvesting is the use of unsustainable methods for harvesting it.
Peyote takes more than 30 years to mature. The risk of removing it in a way that is not environmentally responsible is that the Wixrika will no longer be able to use the plant.
Fences, security personnel, and GPS tracking devices have all been utilized to deter poachers from unlawfully gathering peyote. Although stealing Lophophora Williamsii illegally can result in a 25-year prison sentence, most Mexican police officers tend to turn a blind eye when tourists steal the plant.
Lophophora Williamsii in Wixrika Rituals
For the Wixrika or Huichol Indians, the use of Lophophora Williamsii is an essential component of their religious practices. The Wixrika’s right to utilize peyote in their religious rites is in jeopardy because tourists are gathering it on the revered grounds that they have used for millennia.
NPR heard Pedro Medellin emphasize the significance of the cactus in Wixrika rites while he was conducting a study on the dangers that tourists harvesting Peyote pose to the Wixrika or Huichol Indians. “If Peyote vanishes, then their entire culture disappears,” declared Medellin.
The Multidisciplinary Association for the Preservation of the Indigenous Traditions of Sacred Plants (NIERKIA), in addition, released a pamphlet outlining some future measures the Mexican government could take to safeguard Peyote so that the Wixrika will always have access to Peyote for their rituals.
Inconsistent Laws Create More Risk
People are able to travel to San Luis Potosi and ingest Lophophora Williamsii in the desert without running the danger of getting caught thanks to a legal loophole in Mexico. Only taking the plant out of San Luis Potosi to use it elsewhere is prohibited. For peyote to be better protected on the Wixrika-sacred grounds, the Mexican government needs to establish more uniform legislation regarding its harvesting and use.
It is crucial to make sure that native groups who live in a particular region are not forced to give up their traditional identity in the pursuit of economic prosperity, even though it can be difficult to strike a balance between protecting the rights of native peoples and promoting tourism to the area. The Wixrika’s traditional ceremonies are currently being protected to some extent by the Mexican government.
Does peyote cause hallucinations?
The peyote cactus is a traditional psychedelic in the same family as LSD, which has contributed significantly to the debate over it.
Peyote users are prone to experience psychedelic or hallucinogenic effects. The hallucinogenic substance in peyote, mescaline, is what causes this reaction.
Although everyone will experience the effects differently, the majority of people have vivid hallucinations.
Numerous senses may be affected by these hallucinations, and many people say the trip involves a blending of their senses. People might assert that they can “see noises” or “feel colors,” for instance.
Mescaline’s psychedelic effects also seem to heighten senses. Colors, sounds, and even events themselves could seem more vibrant or daring. For certain people, time might become twisted. Others may experience a shift or alteration in their field of vision and the items therein.
Mescaline frequently causes visions, especially at higher doses. These visions are encounters that don’t take place in the “Nevertheless, to the individual experiencing them, they will appear to be extremely genuine.
Visions can be extremely uplifting or horrifying. They may feel incredibly chaotic, even if they may appear to the person to be of great significance.
Like other hallucinogens, mescaline can lead to hallucinations in certain users “a poor trip These could include unpleasant emotions, events, and feelings.
The individual might experience fear, be plagued by unfavorable hallucinations, or repeatedly relive unpleasant events. The sense of time dilation may also cause the person to feel extremely anxious or imprisoned within these experiences.
Both positive and negative experiences are transient, and both will pass when the body flushes mescaline from the system.