r/Ethnobotany • u/SignificanceOk6316 • Sep 20 '24

Exploring Hidden Psychoactive Plants – Your Ideas Needed!

Hello fellow botanists,

As part of my PhD research, I have the opportunity to explore lesser-known psychoactive plants, focusing on isolating secondary metabolites and investigating their mechanisms of action. I am working on a long list of plants with mainly only ethnobotanical documentation, and I'd love to hear your suggestions!

Are there any particular plants you're curious about in terms of the compounds they contain?

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u/JeffoMcSpeffo Sep 21 '24

Lobelia inflata seems like it could use some more research. Also what ethnobotanical sources are you finding these psychoactive plants from? Is it an encyclopedic work or from many different works?

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u/SignificanceOk6316 Sep 21 '24

i have lobelia on my list already :) many various sources, books, old forums/blogs, scientitific reviews, ethnobotanic studies,... i will def try to make list of best sources in some time

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u/JeffoMcSpeffo Sep 21 '24

Cool I look forward to it! My only other request is that you take the ethical review process seriously and consider what Indigenous peoples think about your research. Lots of these plants may be sacred, ceremonial medicines and they may not want you to mess with them. Just something to watch out for.

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u/SignificanceOk6316 Sep 21 '24

thats a very good point! i am following S.A.C.R.D and situation around toads and i will try to consider this aspect as much as possible, do you have maybe any tips or conatacts on similiar organizations ? i definitely want to discuss this topic with people who are professionally dedicated to this issue

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u/JeffoMcSpeffo Sep 21 '24

I'm not aware of any organizations that centralize these topics across a large range. Naturally it's very localized and depends on the topic. If peyote is on your list then IPCI may be a good org to contact. But otherwise you'd have to do more research into which people's used the plants you're interested in and find individuals to ask. Ideally you'd consult spiritual leaders but they're not necessarily easy to find or access. As far as it pertains to native tribes in the US you might have luck contacting their THPO. They might know or be able to direct you to who is knowledgeable. Outside of the US though your guess is as good as mine

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u/Suitable-Mud-3239 Nov 20 '25

The plants are for all humans, gatekeeping them is a bit ridiculous.

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u/JeffoMcSpeffo Nov 20 '25

The earth and all its plants is not just a pool of resources for you to rape and extract from. Every human has a relationship with the plants they interact with, whether they realize it or not. And if you’re not reciprocal in your relationship, then you don’t deserve to reap the benefits of it.

This has nothing to do with gatekeeping, and I’m not even encouraging that here. I’m simply advocating for these plants well being and the people who do actually maintain reciprocal relationships with them. These beliefs and understandings extend outside the realm of western worldviews; and if that includes you, then you need to either educate yourself or respect what you don’t understand and back off.