CactiGuide.com

Hi

Saw the posts earlier re Opuntia pads, and fruits and wondered more broadly - are any cacti fruit not edible.

I haven't tried many, tho I have eaten some Mamm and Melocactus fruit and they were actaully pretty good, considering they are only about 1/2 inch long. Obviously some like Hylocereus and Opuntia are sold in markets.

are there some that are poisonous, or harmful,

I don't think any are poisonous, but I'm not sure I'd test it. There are too many species of cactus for me to feel comfortable declaring none of them are bad for you. I wonder if Lophophora or Echinopsis pachanoi fruit have enough mescaline to cause any side effects?

I wonder if Lophophora or Echinopsis pachanoi fruit have enough mescaline to cause any side effects?

probably not, in the case of l. williamsii it takes a complete fullgrown plant to have any effect at all

that really is depending onthe plant and the growing conditions, however from what I have heard any FLESHY fruits are edible. (L. williamsii and E. pachanoi are both fleshy FYI)

Not quite poisonous,and adding on to what Peterthecactusguy said, but I would rather not eat a dried-out fruit such as some Ariocarpi.....

Arjen wrote:probably not, in the case of l. williamsii it takes a complete fullgrown plant to have any effect at all

What I have read suggests 5-15 full grown plant "buttons", the tops of the cacti seen above the soil, are used for one trip by the NAC members who take it. I dont know how anyone could do that to such cute cacti though...

gemhunter178 wrote:Not quite poisonous,and adding on to what Peterthecactusguy said, but I would rather not eat a dried-out fruit such as some Ariocarpi.....

I would love to see someone try to eat the "fruits" off of my A. asterias nudum. They were all seeds with a wool covered and very thin skin!

Subverted wrote:

Arjen wrote:probably not, in the case of l. williamsii it takes a complete fullgrown plant to have any effect at all

What I have read suggests 5-15 full grown plant "buttons", the tops of the cacti seen above the soil, are used for one trip by the NAC members who take it. I dont know how anyone could do that to such cute cacti though...

Not that I'd promote drug use, but I really wish that if people felt compelled to have a mescaline high they would learn about the San Pedro Cactus. Same chemical, but in a big, branched, and fast growing plant. It isn't endangered and you don't have to kill the thing to use it. Seems a lot better than having to kill off a dozen slow growing endangered plants!

I agree with that totally!

Saxicola wrote:Not that I'd promote drug use, but I really wish that if people felt compelled to have a mescaline high they would learn about the San Pedro Cactus. Same chemical, but in a big, branched, and fast growing plant. It isn't endangered and you don't have to kill the thing to use it. Seems a lot better than having to kill off a dozen slow growing endangered plants!

As I understand it...the NAC places a special spiritual meaning on the L williamsii and their use...not just the mescaline contained within. That said, aside from religious use I have no arguments with your position. The plants survive when harvested properly according to what I have read, usually...but harvesting properly appears to just be slicing off the above ground part of the cactus with a paint scraper!

This presentation/slide show/whatever is a very well put together bit of info, at least as far as I can tell. The whole website is very interesting. Anyway, they actually did some research about how harvesting influences populations and the average mortality that it induces. This page also presents info about the commercial peyote harvest for the NAC... None of it paints a particularly happy picture, but I found it to be a very interesting read.

And...I think that is more than enough of my derailing this thread.

as I understand it lopping the top off of an L. williamsii doesn't kill it. They grow back. ( that doesn't change the endangered part, nor the it's illegal in the US to have/grow them). Also from what I have heard it takes WAY more of the San Pedros to equal the high form the "buttons" of peyote. I really have no opinion on whether people should get high off of a plant or not. It's their body. I think mostly it bugs me that people destroy such a "cute" cacti as someone else mentioned.

wow, this has gotten way off topic, lol

no I think the topic is close - as for getting high on plants = wrong - the shamans that use sad Pedro use it for healing - the Indians use the peyote and the Pedro for a journey to the soul which seems ok if its there religion- and from what I have read but not tried the torch cactus can have as much content as the peyote but you need to research and to obtain would be difficult. ultimately having grown all from seeds It would be a hard day to cut down such a beautiful plant. and to eat the fruit off a Pedro ? have you seen them furry white cotton seed no pulp. but I have also read the flower from a Pedro does contain some useful components and the fruit from the peyote is very small to small to do any thing but I have seen the ants carry off the entire fruit from a peyote in less than a day "lost all those seeds" and I have a bird that likes peyote seedlings - go figure- the rat pulls them out but doesn't eat them

Quite a lot of cactus fruit are just dry containers with lots of seeds, possibly with lots of hairs/bristles/spines too.
I assume, but don't know, that all the juicy berries are edible. As in non toxic, but not necessarily tasty. A great many species do seem to be eaten, either cultivated or from wild harvesting. There's a thread here, 1 person has listed a number of species: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/18011 ... are-edible

Lophophora williamsii fruits are slightly sweet, a little bland, sort of pleasant / unremarkable. Not that I've ever had more than 1 or 2 ripe at the same time, so it's hard to get a real idea of the flavour. Sucking the fruit, swallowing the pulp and retrieving the seeds is a fun way to clean seeds.

Subverted wrote: ↑Wed Sep 26, 2012 10:44 pm

gemhunter178 wrote:Not quite poisonous,and adding on to what Peterthecactusguy said, but I would rather not eat a dried-out fruit such as some Ariocarpi.....

I would love to see someone try to eat the "fruits" off of my A. asterias nudum. They were all seeds with a wool covered and very thin skin!

BAhahahhhahahha ohhh thats funny stuff let em trip on a cattle crippler!! ~*~