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[ONandONandON]

Hello i've been wondering about this for a while; after purchasing a bag of Calea Z containing seed pods;

Most of the plants that grew had these sharp spear shaped leaves, and grew tall and straight up...



...but one plant grew more bushy, and hanging over, with wider, more rounded leaves...



So is this a new variety, or is Calea Z a male/female plant, or any idea what is going on here? sknaht

2 Likes MadPlanter and Mr. seeds like this.

[MadPlanter]

I don't believe they need the other sex for pollination but idk really. I have two big in ground plants clones from the same mother and albeit they often flower together they are exact copies of each other. They produce viable seed.

Also my plants obviously very similar but have a leaf shape about intermediate to your radical difference. Mine grow very bushy but yet very tall too. Could easily get 10' tall if you let them.

1 Like Mr. seeds likes this.

[FewTrueSeed]

Very cool specimen!

[sporehead]

Wow those are awesome. I have heard of a bitter strain  (pointy leaf) and non bitter (rounded leaf). Perhaps try them out with your mouth. Congratulations on germinating the seeds. I had no luck and hear they are rather tough.

1 Like ONandONandON likes this.

[Lambdanaut]

As it was mentioned, yes, you've got a mix of both the "Sweet" and "Bitter" "varieties" here. There's some accidental nefariousness going on with these labels. The "sweet" and "bitter" varieties are in fact entirely different species with little to nothing to do with each other. There are claims of placebo-only effects from the "sweet variety", while the "bitter variety" is what you're after if you wish to use it as a oneirogen.

As you can see at the worldseedsupply, the tall, sharp leafed plant is the sweet variety, and the smaller, more rounded leaf plant is the REAL calea, the bitter variety.

2 Likes ONandONandON and plantlight like this.

[FewTrueSeed]

Similar alkaloids? That is good to know.

[Pflanzenfreund]

The one with the rounded leaf is the same i was growing a few years ago.
This one is indeed very bitter, tried to drink it, burgh.
Newer saw one with spearlike leafs before.

[Lambdanaut]

Similar alkaloids? That is good to know.

I'd wager that these are two completely separate plants. I wouldn't rule out the "sweet variety" being entirely placebo either.

For the bitter(true) variety, James Duke reported in his Handbook of Medicinal Herbs, 0.01% of a crystalline alkaloid, C21H26O8. Psychoactive components uncertain but believed to be in aromatic and bitter principle.

[sporehead]

Really? I was under the impression that the pointy one was the bitter one. The one I have is nasty bitter and is pointy.

[ONandONandON]

thanks everyone... i havn't even tried the round leaf, because the spear leaf plants grow so much faster, but i will test it soon.
i always guessed the spear leaf was the bitter variety, because they are very bitter, and have deffinite clear effects on dreaming.

1 Like FewTrueSeed likes this.

[FewTrueSeed]

I am blessed to have this one in my collection. I suppose I should step beating around the bush, and just get to know this guy a bit better.

1 Like ONandONandON likes this.

[HulGil]

Am I the only one who thinks 99% of calea on the market is Siam Weed?

[SoulGrower]

Am I the only one who thinks 99% of calea on the market is Siam Weed?

Funny, I was just getting ready to respond to this as well. 

@Tragicfalacygtr2.  Careful before getting to know that one.  I'm pretty sure that is indeed Chromolaena odorata

Not sure why, but i don't see the op's pics anymore.  Anyhoo, I hadn't chimed in bc he said the seeds came from a batch of material he bought.. so i assumed seeds from same pod and he did just end up with a variation in morphology (and maybe he did).

However, I agree that almost any plant or seed you buy online (I can't speak to dried material) is not Calea z.  It's Siam Weed.  And it's not safe to ingest.  Look at the link to wikipedia    I found this out after the fact... hoping no one else has to.

Check out this thread:  http://sharetheseeds.me/forum/index.php?topic=1391.0

[FewTrueSeed]

Bah humbug. I want the real thing!!!! I have some seeds i pulled out of some calea I ordered. Can anyone confirm these are real calea? They look like aster type flower heads however.

[ONandONandON]

@tragicfalacygtr2 .. i can confirm those are similar to my seed pods.

Am I the only one who thinks 99% of calea on the market is Siam Weed?

Funny, I was just getting ready to respond to this as well. 

@Tragicfalacygtr2.  Careful before getting to know that one.  I'm pretty sure that is indeed Chromolaena odorata

Not sure why, but i don't see the op's pics anymore.  Anyhoo, I hadn't chimed in bc he said the seeds came from a batch of material he bought.. so i assumed seeds from same pod and he did just end up with a variation in morphology (and maybe he did).

However, I agree that almost any plant or seed you buy online (I can't speak to dried material) is not Calea z.  It's Siam Weed.  And it's not safe to ingest.  Look at the link to wikipedia    I found this out after the fact... hoping no one else has to.

Check out this thread:  http://sharetheseeds.me/forum/index.php?topic=1391.0

Thanks for bringing that to attention, very interesting, Calea Z and Chromolaena Odorata are in the same family, 99% might just be mis-identified!
However i must say, i think it's completely safe if 99% of people are using it, and it works well for me, adding much clarity to dreams and what not.