Up in Smoke: Skullcap

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I am doing this blog, so that anyone who wants to try a new herbal blend, can hopefully find it on my blog, and read a little about it first. The reason for the recent legislation on herbal incense and spice, is because people have no idea what to expect from some of the stronger blends. I would like to help make that fear less scary. I consider myself a pioneer of herbal exploration. Yes others have come before me, but what is right for one person is not always right for another person. My blogs are unbiased, if I don't like something that I have tried I will post an accurate portrayal as to why I didn't like it. I hope you enjoy my blog, and if you feel I need to add something, or if you have any questions feel free to either email me at strummer_90@yahoo.com, or just leave a me a comment. Alright folks keep blazing and thanks for reading. :-)

Friday, February 11, 2011

Skullcap

Skullcap aka Scutellaria lateriflora aka Mad dog weed

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scutellaria_lateriflora

The general use for skullcap is to promote sleep, and it is a mild sedative. I will by trying this herb tonight, because I have to wake up at 6am for work tomorrow, and I don't even get off work till 11 pm. There are also some noted uses of this herb in the study of cancer, you can read up more on this at the wiki link above, if that sort of stuff interests you. At one point in time, this herb was thought to help cure hydrophobia aka rabies.

I personally am only interested in if this herb is going to help me sleep tonight. I purchased this herb on ebay, but you can find it at The Herbal Smoke Cafe.

Alright so my first impression of this herb is grass, not the good kind but like the crap you pull out of your lawnmower. It smells like cooking herbs to me, I loaded my awesome purple pipe and took my first hit of skullcap:

My first hit was kind of mild, I would rate the first hit at about a 4, but my second hit burned at about a 6. I felt an overall sense of wellbeing, kind of like when you take half a loratab, I just felt dopey, but not tired. The effects of this herb don't amplify the more you smoke, they just kinda stay at the same level of dopiness, till either you fall asleep, or it wears off in about an hour. Now if you are using this herb as a sleep promoter, I would suggest that you smoke it lightly till you fall asleep, I preferred the my my mini hookah for this. The hookah tones down the harshness and gives it a different flavor, not by much but enough to make it tolerable. I would probably suggest mixing this herb with like lavender flower, or something mellow for an intensified state of tranquility. I will be mixing this herb around to find a good combination, so I will be trying this herb again. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave me a message or a comment in the comment boxes. Thanks for reading, keep blazing and toodles.