Preparation of Fresh San Pedro:
2 Methods
See dosage information below Methods.
Method 1
If Growing:
When your cactus has reached approximately two and a quarter
feet in
height, cut the top four inches off so that the tip can
bereplanted, leave
four inches or so at the base for new buds to sprout from, and
harvest the
middle foot and a half for consumption. This dosage estimate
assumes that
your cactus is around three inches in diameter; if it is
skinnier, use more.
After Harvesting or Purchasing:
First weight out the doses you would like to have. Nick or notch out the spine clusters. Split the cactus by cutting from the "valleys" between the ridges inward to the center of the core. this yields a "stick" of cactus with a diamond-shaped cross section which gives the most support to the green tissue during the peeling. Starting from the corners and working along the length of the ridge, carefully peel off the skin. Take multiple passes to do this. It is possible to detach the skin in a single piece, if you are patient. CAREFULLY peal the extremely thin waxy layer off from all the cacti strips with the knife. It might be a good idea to get several knives and find out which one works the best. You want to get the clear-like flaky layer and the dark, waxy skin. Together they are very very thin. You want to save as much of the lighter green "meat" underneath. Avoid leaving any of the green tissue clinging to the skin. The skin is likely to tear when lifting it away from scars and blemishes. the peel can be re-started by picking at it with a thumbnail if this happens.
Next, you look carefull at the strips where it joined the cactus core. If you examine this very closely you can see the part that is very white and kind of "woody." This is the "woody core." You can cut this off if you prefer. This reduces the bulk of the cacti involved in the cooking process. Be careful not to disturb or remove any of the skin, or the meat for a ways beneath it.
When that is done there are a couple routes to go:
1. Slice the skinless strips up into very small pieces. Just large enough to strain out with a collinder, or if you prefer, smaller for use with cheese cloth. Then move on the the cooking recipies. NOTE: if you use Method 2, it might be better to use the smallest pieces possible to get the highest alkaloid yield.
2. Get a Juicer. Cut the strips into chunks and run through the juicer. Save the juice in a seperate container. Take the pulp left over and use Method 2 in the recipies section. Take the liquid left over after filtering out the pulp and add the juice you saved from the juicer earlier. Now continue to reduce the volume of the liquid or evaporate for use in capsuls. NOTE: This might be the way to get highest alkaloid yield.
Your San Pedro is ready to cook.
Method 2
If Growing:
When your cactus has reached approximately two and a quarter
feet in
height, cut the top four inches off so that the tip can
bereplanted, leave
four inches or so at the base for new buds to sprout from, and
harvest the
middle foot and a half for consumption. This dosage estimate
assumes that
your cactus is around three inches in diameter; if it is
skinnier, use more.
After Harvesting or Purchasing:
Take the sections of cactus you intend to use freeze it, and then thaw it out. Repeat this cycle several times. This breaks down thecell walls and ruptures the plant tissues, making it easier to extract the mescaline from them. This also has the result of making it easier to separate the cactus flesh from the waxy cuticle later, an important step that will significantly reduce nausea when consuming the brew, as the cuticle is rich in compounds that can cause gastric distress.
After a few cycles of freezing and thawing, cut the woody core
out from the
center of your cactus and discard it. Be sure to scrape any
potentially useful
tissue off of it before discarding. The next step is to scrape
the flesh off
from inside of the waxy cuticle. A butter knife is useful for
this
purpose. If you like, you can attempt to peel the cuticle off
from the outside,
but I have found it easier to work from the inside out. Working
from the
inside out also permits one to skip the time-consuming process of
de-spining the cactus, as long as one wears work gloves and is
careful.
Your San Pedro is ready to cook.
Dosage:
This boils down to mescaline content. Mescaline threashold dose is around 150mg. San Pedro takes about 2 - 2.5 or so hours to begin to peak. The trip lasts about 10-12 hours unless you dose pretty high. Then it can go on for much longer. Moderate dosages range from around 150-250mg and a kinda hard trip being around 250mg-300mg (driving starts getting really hard). About 450mg you can look forward to possible ego disolusion (at the 500mg+ dose probable ego disolusion: much above 500mg and it will disolve) and it can very well be a pretty long experience (up to 24 hours). Dried San Pedro has 2-3mg of Mescaline per gram, and research shows that the dry weight is 25% of the fresh weight (75% water). Remember that potencey can vary greatly. Remember to test the potency if you are unsure.
In Theory, according to DeKorne:
100g dried= 300mg Mescaline (3%)
Other sources Hoffman, Schultes: 2% mescaline dry and .12% mescaline fresh.
Another source: Approximately 1200mg of mescaline per kilo / 550 mg per pound fresh.
Another source: Use a leg 12 X 3 inches for a strong psychedelic experience.
8 oz (226 gms) whole, unpeeled, fresh cactus = 270 mg
mescaline.
12 oz (340 gms) whole, unpeeled, fresh cactus = 400 mg mescaline.
2-2.5" dia fresh unpeeled ~=1.5 oz/in
3.5-4" dia fresh unpeeled ~=3.5 oz/in
3 oz. fibrous pith
16 oz. fresh cactus ~=+ 6 oz. white tissue
+ 6 oz. green tissue
+ 1 oz. skin and spines.
12 oz. fresh cactus =1 oz. dried (+ 7/8 oz. peel).
1 oz. dried cactus = 2 slightly heaping Tbs cactus granules
4 oz. fresh cactus = 5/8 C chopped.
-------------Peyote.com
Mescaline dosage in miligrams:
150mg Mescaline: Threashold Dose (SUPPLIER POTENCY TESTING DOSE)
225mg Mescaline: Mild - Moderate Trip: Mescaline Easily felt.
300mg Mescaline: Moderate - Hard Trip: Full hallucinogenic dose for the average sized adult.
375mg Mescaline: A Nice Hard Trip, talking on the phone my become difficult.
450mg Mescaline: Warning: Intense Trip lasting 12 hours (another 12 goofy).
500mg Mescaline: WARNING: Experienced high dosers ONLY!
540mg Mescaline: WARNING: TRUE HIGH DOSERS ONLY!
600mg Mescaline: A Glimpse at the Divine