There aren't very many legal highs in USA left that haven't
been ruined by the DEA, FDA, or some other government
organization with three letters. That's one reason why incense
potpourri is becoming increasingly popular.
Made up of a variety of flowers and herbs with psychoactive
properties, your average botanical potpourri usually contains
some of the following (listed by their Latin names first):
Canavalia rosea. Known commonly as Beach Bean or Bay Bean, this
plant has a bright purple-pink flower and grows in coastal
regions in tropical climates. A botanical potpourri including
extract of the Bay Bean plant is smoked in Mexico as another
legal high for its mild hallucinogenic qualities.
Nymphaea caerulea. The Blue Egyptian Water Lily is an ancient
plant that people have been using for legal highs for centuries.
With its natural sedative properties, the Lily is commonly made
into tea, and it's thought that the Egyptians used a pot pourri
of blue lotus flowers as a sacrament in their religious
ceremonies. It's even possible that a botanical potpourri with
the Blue Water Lily was the hallucinogenic Lotus plant in the
ancient epic Odyssey by Homer.
Scutellaria nana. A member of the mint family, Skullcap (as it's
more commonly known) is a common ingredient in potpourri herbal
incense, and was believed by ancient Chinese to promote health.
Modern research has shown that Skullcap inhibits a pot pourri of
toxins in the body, including nitric oxide, cytokine, and
chemokine.
Pedicularis densiflora. Indian Warrior is the common name of
this herb, as well as the name of one incense potpourri in
particular that is said to be particularly potent due to its
composition from the herb of the same name. A common ingredient
listed in pot potpourri, the Indian Warrior bud is often smoked
for its relaxing properties.
Leonotis leonurus. The medicinal and psychoactive qualities of
the flower known as Lion's Tail make it an obvious choice to
include in any legal pot potpourri. But Lion's Tail is much more
than just another legal high; it actually is used to treat
everything from fever to hemorrhoids in Africa even today.
Zornia latifolia. It turns out that finding legal highs in USA
and Brazil are equally difficult. This has led many Brazilians
to smoke a legal potpourri that usually includes this herb: the
seeds are actually smoked in a sort of botanical potpourri to
produce euphoric and sedative effects.
Nelumbo nucifera. The Lotus flower is a common ingredient in
almost every potpourri herbal incense on the market, and it has
a long history in Asian religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism.
In fact, a legal potpourri of Lotus powder is burned in Buddhist
temples even today.
Leonurus sibiricus. The interesting thing about this plant, also
known as "little marijuana," is that in ancient Chinese
medicine, it was often not part of a botanical potpourri—rather,
it was always used on its own. The health effects are quite
profound as it is an active antibiotic, diaphoretic, and tonic.
