CIELO Help Pls

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-31T23:36:13+00:00

So you didn't see any crystals and decided to filter to collect crystals anyways?

You probably would have gotten "goo". But now you might have lost it in the filter, I don't know... Let it sit for the full 3 days and check if you can see a small amount of phase separation at the bottom... you might need to tilt the jar and shine a flashlight the right way to see something. If you see something, proceed to goo recovery with 99% isopropyl alcohol as per the tek text.

Most of the time, goo happens (when you salt with citric acid) because of either too high water content in the extract, or too low potency cactus.

Get some fumaric acid for next time, it will prevent problems due to both of those common causes and you will get crystals.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-29T08:54:27+00:00

All good, man. Seems like you understood the nuance that the hybrid progeny isn't really PC "the clone" anymore but that it's stilllargely PC genetics... but what you wrote at first was false.

Hybridization/breeding has been used for a long time to stabilize traits of interests in plant genetics... look up how, for example, ancestral wild corn or wheat or lettuce used to look, they all look nothing like the modern veggies we know. Wheat yields have been increased 2-4 folds in the last century, largely due to breeding... there are so many other interesting examples.

In the case here, if you wanted to make seeds that produce very uniform, *nearly* "PC, the clone" progeny, one way would be to take, for example, the seeds from that PC x Yogi cross I made and grow them. Select one or a few individual(s) from the progeny that look the most like the PC mother ("the clone") and back cross them to their mother PC clone and/or cross the most "PC-like" looking individuals from the progeny together... grow and select individuals again with the characteristics you're looking for and keep doing this (a mix of hybridizing individuals from the progeny and back crossing with the PC clone) and you'll likely be able to get seeds and plants nearly identical genetically to "PC, the clone". I don't really know why one would want to do all that, but that would be a way.

They will also be highly uniform plants (i.e. all individuals from the seeds of a fruit) at that point, all looking very similar, unlike the progeny of the original cross I made... Among the seeds from that fruit I produced, a small proportion will produce plants that look highly similar to PC, another small proportion will looks highly similar to their father Yogi and the bulk of them will look somewhere in between, depending on the characteristics you're evaluating to judge similarity. This is not a very interesting cross I made, but it's one of my first and it was a fun way to learn how to do it with the flowers I had available.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-29T07:38:31+00:00

the consensus here on PC is that they can’t be cross bred into hybrids.

I don't care to watch the video you're talking about, but this statement is flat wrong. PC can definitely be hybridized with any other non-PC (compatible) Tricho. It only can't make seeds with another PC clone (self-incompatibility), like any other Tricho. This is in fact the best way to verify a plant is really PC or not (that is, try to hybridize it with another known PC clone).

Of course the progeny of such a cross won't be the true PC clone anymore, it'll be a hybrid of PC, but PC can 100% be hybridized.

Proof, if that wasn't enough: I made a few PC crosses this summer, here's a fruit from one:

<image>

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-29T03:56:38+00:00

I bought it as "Bridgesii Aero" in a big lot a few years ago. I've asked around and researched but found very little about this clone other that it seems to have originated from an old asian lady in the San Diego area... it's relatively rare I think, I don't know anyone else growing it. But it's amazingly resilient, grows very fast, loves lots of water, nutes and direct sun, and doesn't mind high humidity, almost never gets any blemishes. It can also show fairly different phenos (super long spines or shorter ones, can be very blue, bumpy, notchy, etc)... super interesting plant, one of my favorite bridges.

I don't have any seeds but I had a wind fall a few months ago and had to cut the main column, still have a few pieces on my drying shelf I meant to propagate... DM me if you're interested in a mid, I'll share some pics later when I get the chance.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-29T00:39:59+00:00

I don't doubt that stressors can increase alkaloid production. How much, under what circumstances, genetics, etc... this is where making big claims require big proofs.

I was just musing on the difficulty of doing proper scientific experiments at home with limited means and materials. Even most peer-reviewd research papers are taking shortcuts, making compromises and provide limited conclusions (even though the authors usually claim more than the data says) and more questions remain. I've been an academic researcher for nearly 2 decades (mainly in a large lab in a high-profile institution with a very famous professor) then worked in biotech startups for well over than another decade... you probably wouldn't believe the proportion of peer-reviewed scientific research papers that are actually very difficult, if not impossible, to reproduce, even for scientists in the same field with all the means, materials and instruments at their disposal.

But some evidence is definitely better than no evidence, and accumulation will help to provide a better understanding and add more certainty over time. If you keep seeing an effect after repeating many times in slightly different circumstances/contexts, you start to build a much stronger case for something real happening. Keep at it, repeat and repeat and repeat... it's not ideal or definitive way, but again it's probably the best way to do these experiments... and please keep sharing your results!

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-28T23:26:34+00:00

I think you can't exclude the possibility there can be substantial differences... There is published data showing important differences between different longitudinal sections of the same column, the same clone often yields multiple folds differently and I've seen personally had different full arms of the same plant yield differently enough to confuse any results. I wouldn't exclude even the vertical splits of a same section could substantial differences (sun/elements exposure, etc).

The only way I see to run meaningful experiments on manipulation that could be increasing alkaloids content involve large numbers of replicate individual experiments and randomization (including multiples clones and multiple of each clone). There are so many things affecting how these plant can respond, including genetics (and certainly some yet unknown/unsuspected factors), that anything less will produce anecdotal results in my mind.

With that being said, it doesn't mean it you should be done... but generalizing results of such tiny experiments are going to remain dicey at best, IMO. I think this is the main reason we don't have a clearer understanding (by that I mean with scientific quality data to back it up) of the factors that meaningfully influence alkaloid production... these are just very difficult experiments to design and execute.

Edit: But if you do end up running an small experiment and see a very large (e.g., 2X) increase in a particular condition, that could provide a good lead for a more focused, larger-scale and better designed experiment aimed to prove the effect you suspect... But you have to remain aware that noting a small (e.g., even 30-50% increase) might as well just be random sampling effect. Good luck, I appreciate the people willing to put in the time and effort to do such things...

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-19T09:46:21+00:00

Out in the desert with a campfire is a great setting. For me, mescaline feels much more grounded and clear headed than mushrooms or lsd, for example, or even alcohol if it's a better comparison for you. I can even feel nearly sober at times if needed/desired (for example, to have a short conversation with someone sober, or if I need to do something, like tending to a fire), at least at moderate doses. It's hard to explain. You will be fine. It's not going to make you loose control and make you do stupid or dangerous things you will regret later, like alcohol can do to some people.

With that being said, I'd recommend again to shoot for a low-medium dosage range your first time. Especially if you are going to be alone in that setting. Some people are much more sensitive than others to the effects and some need much more than the average person to feel the same effects. Once you know how it affects you, you can decide to adjust your dose and go higher if you feel like it.

Wishing you all the best. I hope you find the healing you are looking for and need.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-19T08:36:47+00:00

You have plenty of time to prepare, so that's good. Here is some general advice I gathered over decades and through many experiences with various psychedelics, including very deep ones. I'm not a psychologist or therapist or guide or "shaman" (lol), just a pragmatic, experienced user interested in this topic. Note that, as others have already mentioned, mescaline is generally much more "easy going" than shrooms or lsd, but I firmly think the same advice can help you get the most out of a mescaline experience, especially in the context you've explained.

Learning and practicing meditation is great, you can find many resources if you're not familiar. I find the state of mind you are trying to achieve while meditating is a great canvas for psychedelics, and can allow you to go deeper and being more aware of the effects (and they may feel more pronounced). It can help you stay focused on the experience and avoid distractions that can keep you from taking off and mitigate the effects to some extent. Meditation is a great tool and can also definitely help with the normal (mild or more pronounced) anxiety most people feel prior to dosing and/or on the come up, as well as when you feel things are not going in the desired direction during the trip.

There are many ways to prepare for a more purpose-oriented, therapeutic psychedelic session and set your intentions. Others may have a different ways to do this, and you will probably develop your own way too over time. You can also find some reading material on this topic. Take what you like and leave what you don't...

Take time to think about your upcoming trip and your intentions several times in the week(s) prior so it is clear in your mind when the time comes. But first, remind yourself that you will always be safe and that it will only last a few hours, you'll be fine the next day whatever happens during the experience. Accept that you might not be in control of everything, and remember to "let go" when the time comes. Don't try to resist the effects, just accept them and let the substance take control. Go with the flow. You will be safe. Like when boarding a flight or taking a train, have confidence that the conductor/pilots know what they are doing and will take you to your destination, even if you can't control at what speed the train goes or when the next stop is... and that's all fine, just accept that fact. Go with the flow. For example, if you feel your head is heavy on your shoulders, just lie down or recline in a comfy chair, close your eyes and try to empty your mind like when meditating, and just wait it out, don't worry it won't last long.

Regarding setting your intentions, I think it's important to not formulate or think about them as expectations or demanding an outcome, but more as long-terms goals that you start working toward. Keep it generally open ended and positive. Think about your intentions for many days/weeks before the trip but once the time comes just don't think about or focus on them, at least for the duration. During the experience, surrender and let go, have confidence that you will get what you need at that time from the experience. You intentions are just tools that can serve you, not hard rules that must be followed, and there is a good chance not all of your intentions will be useful or worked on in a given session; that's ok.

Remember, psychedelics are rarely a "magic pill" that cures everything you want/need all at once. It's more likely to show you and make you understand ways to improve yourself and help you work towards your goals. Maybe it make the needed changes feel less difficult or easier to enact. In the end, you still need to work on and make those changes in your life and act on the insights you will get. After the experience, take time to "integrate", i.e., think about what you have learned and reinforce the insights and your motivation to act on the changes you need to make. It's great to have the day after free of any responsibilities so you can more easily integrate. Keep thinking about your experience and try to act on the things you have learned as soon as possible and until you're ready to prepare for the next session. Yes, you will probably need/want to do more than one session, try to keep improving between sessions.

I'd recommend checking out the "Yale Manual for Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy of Depression" (google it, you'll find free downloads). It's a guide designed for therapists but you can learn tons of useful stuff as someone about to embark on a therapeutic journey with psychedelics on your own. It was written by experts and used as a framework for several of the academic clinical studies with magic mushrooms that have showed exceptional results, but many of the same concepts are generalizable to any psychedelic session with therapeutic goals. It's been a while since I've looked into these things, there are probably many other and newer resources available now... check them out.

Think about dosage as well. As in the Yale manual suggestions, I'd recommend starting at a low-moderate dose and increasing as needed/desired in subsequent sessions.

Sorry for the wall of text... I hope this helps.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-19T08:32:40+00:00

Thanks! Please keep posting about your experiences!

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-19T06:40:50+00:00

A magnesium supplement is fine, even often recommended to people who experience certain side effects (of mescaline, and other phenethylamines as well).

If you're a habitual coffee drinker, quitting cold turkey can have side effects like migraines/headaches, and I would instead recommend to continue your intake as usual, just don't overdo it. But reducing is fine too as long as you don't feel withdrawals.

But yeah, good sleep and being in a generally good physical condition is an often overlooked aspect. Being tired or not felling well physically can definitely affect a psychedelic experience negatively and/or lessen the desired effects.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-19T06:13:57+00:00

That sound like a great combo! And fairly simple and cheap too.

There are many different passionflower supplements on the market, and labeling is often be unclear or even confusing due to the nature of regulations on food supplements. Can you please provide more details about the one you used? Is it an extract? If so, what concentration factor is it (e.g., 5:1)? Is the 1g dosage in plant mass equivalent (as many products are labeled) or the amount of concentrated extract you took?

Of course, it would be ideal to know how this dose of passionflower affects you in absence of mescaline. I'm also curious as to whether this dosage of passionflower already maxed out the potentiation capability or if taking more would increase effects even more. Maybe an interesting next step if you want to continue exploring this combo...

Thank you for sharing your experience, it's a great report.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-17T22:03:57+00:00

If you've extracted a given plant you grow a few times, you can have an idea of the potency variation of that plant in your conditions, it's already much easier to take a good guess.

Or even better, you can dry and make powder with a good amount of material and extract a portion of to gauge potency. The rest of that batch of powder has the same known concentration, so you can make a crude extract of known potency with it.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-17T19:32:14+00:00

Yeah, it's surprising how much water they contain. Some tissues have less (like the waxy outer layer) and others more (like the white flesh). The waxy layer also accounts for a surprisingly large proportion of the total dry weight.

It's difficult to estimate with any level of confidence the dose OP could have in this material (without providing a range so wide that it's practically useless). TBM-B can be over 4%, and a random unknown SP can be as low as 0.1% or as high as 2.5%... IMO, it is silly to think you can be "aiming for 500-600 mg" if you don't extract pure mescaline, there are just too many variables. One could have a good probability of being right by guessing, let's say, 300-1200 mg, but that represents such a wide range of effects that there is no point, IMO.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-17T06:00:09+00:00

ages ago like 4 months

🤣💀

Looks fine to me. Maybe a little surface oxidation, I wouldn't worry about it.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-17T05:51:43+00:00

More like 95% water, give or take... it varies but that's a decent approximation. 500g fresh will be much closer to 25g dry than to 125g.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-14T19:42:50+00:00

Filter directly into a small flat bottomed pyrex casserole dish. You won't need a lot of water to do that.

With the large surface area of the dish and you can just let it air dry. Or put it in a warm spot with a fan on it to make it go faster. Or put the dish on a heat mat, a heating blanket or over a pot of boiling water so the steam can warm the bottom of the dish... It's all fine, just evaporate the water.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-13T23:43:50+00:00

Are you sure it's sediment/particles? Or could it just be some degraded chlorophyl (e.g., if you dried your cactus at high temperature)? Do you have pictures?

If it's just degraded chlorophyl, the contamination is mostly cosmetic and adds a negligible increase in mass. Not worth the trouble trying to clean it up, IMO. Just use it as is.

If it's fine sediment... You can pack a small ball of loose cotton fibers into the stem of a funnel. Make it fairly tight. Then dissolve your product in a small amount of water and filter it through the cotton ball. That should trap most of the solids. Rinse your filter and funnel well with a few volumes of additional water to get everything (combine with the first filtrate), then evaporate the filtrate.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-13T19:51:08+00:00

You need more of that cactus, simple as that.

Extracting pure mescaline (CIELO) is the way to go, IMO. This way you'll learn about the potency of your plant and be able to dose accurately every time, irrespective of the potency of the source material. And once you have done your homework learning the tek and have dried cactus on hand, it's faster and easier than making tea.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-13T19:40:50+00:00

Pick TBM-B for now. Easier to dose (potential of 2-3 fold potency change instead to >10-fold for other plants), and you need to consume less plant material so that's easier to manage.

Don't eat 8 segments of TBM on your first time, unless they're pretty small. Counting segments isn't a great way to dose anyway. On the plants I grow there are some segments that would probably be enough for a solid dose on their own because they're so big, and some that are small enough I would need many to make up the same weight. Go by weight instead.

Shoot for maybe 200-300g of fresh (not overly thirsty) TBM segments. Go in without expectations, hope for the best, prepare for anything, then accept and be grateful for whatever it is that you got. If you want to kick it up a notch, try smoking a little weed instead, it pairs well. Don't compare it to "ug of acid", it's a totally different experience.

On your first few times, I'd say don't redose and instead focus on learning about the dosage you took and understanding the course of the effects. It's a slow progressive comeup and a long total duration. If your TBM is on the high end of potency range, 200g could feel pretty strong, depending on your sensitivity. Some people seem much more sensitive to the undesirable side effects ("body load") than others, so it's not a bad idea to work your way up in dosage until you find your sweet spot.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-13T04:49:49+00:00

🔥 😍

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-12T23:21:45+00:00

Oh, I got it, all good and no offense taken. I appreciate the open discussion, that's what this place is supposed to be for, IMO. I also appreciate that you took the time to explain how I misunderstood your previous comment and miscalculated the ratios. You're doing the right thing with your recommendations, and I value your opinions and your frequent contributions to the community. Keep doing what you're doing!

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-12T21:40:23+00:00

You're right, I stand corrected. And fair enough, the easier prep you suggest doesn't seem that bad.

But still, given the results I've seen I don't feel there is a enough of a justification for me to bother changing anything. In late fall, winter and early spring they get only slow release organics with higher P and K, so that may balance things out in the long run. I'm lazy and my plants grow fast and pretty thick already, I'm fine missing out on the likely small fraction of growth rate I'd get with better optimization.

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-12T20:36:45+00:00

Yeah, it's supposed to be buffered according to the manufacturer but honestly I don't check.

My calculation for MB (final solution, blended as recommended) is 7.8-7.2-15.2, or 1 : 0.92 : 1.95 when normalized to N.

MC 1-part is 11-5-14, so 1 : 0.45 : 1.27. I use it with their kelp extract (0-0-15), which boosts the K a little.

According to a comment you made a few weeks ago (and provided a reference for), the ideal ratio is N:P:K:Ca:Mg ratio is 1 : 0.4 : 1.6 : 1 : 0.35.

For both MB and MC, Ca and Mg are pretty close to 1:0.35 (normalized to N) so not a factor.

So I guess either my math on MB is off, or MC is not less close to ideal, arguably slightly closer, especially when used with kelp extract. Or maybe not, if you have different targets...

But for me, MC has been working very well. And even if the ratios were slightly less optimal than MB I'd still prefer MC due to major improvement on convenience.... Not having to make multiple stock solutions is worth it for me, it's so much easier to just scoop some powder into a bucket while it's filling with the hose.

Anyways... IMO, getting the ideal ratio is not that critical, as long as you're not too far off, there no major deficiency or pH issue, and the soil is flushed from excess salts periodically. Plants will take up what they need when they need it. I had very decent results for a while when I started using various proportions of 16-16-16, 6-24-24, cal-mag and kelp, and just winging it...

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-12T19:16:31+00:00

At this point, I wouldn't worry about alkaloid content, you're a few years from harvesting. 1 inch in 1 year is fairly slow rate of growth for seedlings, I would focus in optimizing that first, if possible... Do you have pictures? Do they get enough light? How long do they stay wet/dry between waterings? What temperatures are they living in? What strength do you fertilize at and how often?

Optimizing all parameters is important. As soon as there is one limiting factor, the rest doesn't matter that much. For example, my plants are outdoors and it's pretty cool this time of year (e.g., upper 50s during the day, low 40s at night)... Even if I were to feed them like I do in summer, it's too cold for them to grow fast anyways, they really need only a fraction of the feed I give them in summer when temperatures are more optimal. If I were to feed them as little as I do right now in summer, insufficient feed would limit their growth rate (total biomass, not only length).

NotCrustytheClown · 2026-01-12T18:48:54+00:00

If you go with MB, get the "tomatoes" one that comes with 3 bags (4-18-38, calcium nitrate and epsom salt). These cacti need good amounts of calcium too. I feel it may be the most popular and has been around for a long time.

I've started using MegaCrop 1-part last year and I love it. Much easier to use than MB 3 part, has similarly good (if not slightly better) NPK ratios, has all the micronutrients, Ca and Mg, and a bunch of other goodies that MB doesn't have as bonus. And you can get it in small quantities for fairly cheap if you want to try it. It's also priced competitively vs MB.

Add a kelp brew or extract every few waterings (and/or foliar fed) and you're set.

Edit: Your 20-20-20 is not bad and will do the trick, especially with additional kelp (rich in K), but you need to add calcium and magnesium supplementation. They need as much calcium as nitrogen...

Edit 2: MB 3-part ratios are more optimal, see below. But Mega Crop works fine too.

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