# Salvia **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 8, 2009, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309 "2009-01-08T00:41:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2009, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/21 "2009-01-09T03:57:34Z")
> [@Kuboydal](#): > > Salvia guaranitica is a reliable rather large perennial with beautiful blue flowers. The cultivar ‘Argentine Skies’ is reaaly quite nice. Also great for attracting hummingbirds. ---
**Author:** ![busterbloodvessel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9c0ed/32.png) [@busterbloodvessel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/busterbloodvessel)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2009, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/22 "2009-01-09T05:17:45Z")
This is freaky stuff. No idea why it is legal. ---
**Author:** ![Jettboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/85e7bf/32.png) [@Jettboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jettboy)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2009, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/23 "2009-01-09T15:40:26Z")
> [@busterbloodvessel](#): > > This is freaky stuff. No idea why it is legal. It’s legal because it hasn’t been shown to be deadly, or even physically harmful. Making possession or usage of a benign substance illegal is a knee-jerk reaction that does society absolutely no good. If government legislated out of existence anything that was dangerous, mind-altering or unpleasant we could say goodbye to rough sex, good whiskey and turnip greens. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2009, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/24 "2009-01-09T15:49:23Z")
Salvia belongs in the sub-category of “Things that will get you really messed up, but not what you were expecting” along with Nutmeg, Jimson Weed, Peyote and DMT. ---
**Author:** ![HumanMonkeyGod](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c67d28/32.png) [@HumanMonkeyGod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HumanMonkeyGod)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2009, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/25 "2009-01-09T15:53:50Z")
The first time I tried it I was alone, and actually passed out while hallucinating. The (incredibly vivid) hallucination involved the fabric of our world being torn away by some unseen entity. I’ll never know exactly how long I was out for, I’d guess maybe half a minute, and when I came to I was clutching at a stair-post I’d collapsed near, trying to hold on as everything got ripped away. Immediately afterwards I was giggling helplessly, and for about 20 minutes after I felt unsteady. Within half an hour I felt fine, my mood was actually pretty good. Tried it again with some friends, and I got serious giggles (with a smaller dose), much like nitrous oxide gas. Friend 1’s reaction: nada Friend 2’s reaction: slightly paranoid freakout, was incoherent and didn’t seem to recognize us, felt like something was on her skin (she began undressing before we stopped her :eek:) Friend 3’s reaction: nada Later that night I tried more by myself, and again momentarily passed out. I know I briefly hallucinated, but had no memory of it at all. I think I only passed out for a second or two, my friends seemed unaware I had at all, but I was extremely confused when I opened my eyes again, had no idea how much time had passed. My advice, do not try it alone, do not try too high a concentration (the one I tried was like 20x potency or something crazy). ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2009, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/26 "2009-01-09T17:29:13Z")
I got my mom this one some years ago at the League of NH Craftsman show and it’s held up pretty well, although it may have faded a little in the sun. Vermont Botanicals has really cool stuff. [![](http://www.vermontbotanical.com/lg/salvia.jpg) ](http://www.vermontbotanical.com/lg/salvia.jpg) What…? ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2009, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/27 "2009-01-09T19:07:55Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > This is more of an IMHO, but since you ask… > > I have quite a bit of experience with Salvia, and in my opinion the tender perennials are often undervalued but are more ornamental garden subjects than the hardy S. x superba sorts. > > For instance, [Salvia ‘Silke’s Dream’](http://www.plantdelights.com/Catalog/Current/Detail/04442.html) is a very nice plant to grow as an annual/temperennial. S. microphylla, S. urtica, S. ‘Purple Majesty’ and S. guaranitica are examples of other excellent garden plants. \ I have a lovely Salvia species growing in full sun, with almost no extra water, in my Zone 3, arid area garden - it’s a very tough, very beautiful perennial. It makes interesting cut flowers to add to a small arrangement, too, with its purple spikes. ETA: I just realized you were talking about the tender ones, not the hardy ones (I can actually read - I even do it sometimes!). Well, my point stands - they really are great as a tough plant. 🙂 (That’ll learn the OP to be more specific. 😃 ) ---
**Author:** ![daygecko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/91b2a8/32.png) [@daygecko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/daygecko)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2009, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/28 "2009-01-09T23:41:38Z")
I’ll add my rather ‘meh’ experiences to the pile, I suppose. First time was chewing ~6 fresh-picked leaves. It took around a half hour before I started to feel something ‘other’, and this feeling was very slight, so I got into the shower with the lights off to try to filter out any distracting stimuli. I lay in the tub and remember feeling very relaxed and at peace with a sensation like increased gravity pulling me to the floor. I was still aware of my surroundings yet had a very nice, pleasant, realistic dream for perhaps fifteen minutes. Then it faded, and that was that. The second time I got a good deal on a concentrated tincture and ended up taking higher and higher doses in the prescribed manner (buccal) with absolutely no result. I now read that it has since become illegal in my state. Ah, well. It was brief and slightly pleasant. ---
**Author:** ![busterbloodvessel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9c0ed/32.png) [@busterbloodvessel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/busterbloodvessel)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/29 "2009-01-11T00:52:11Z")
> [@Jettboy](#): > > It’s legal because it hasn’t been shown to be deadly, or even physically harmful. Making possession or usage of a benign substance illegal is a knee-jerk reaction that does society absolutely no good. > > If government legislated out of existence anything that was dangerous, mind-altering or unpleasant we could say goodbye to rough sex, good whiskey and turnip greens. I should have said, I can’t see why Salvia is legal while mushrooms, LSD, marijuana etc. are not. It’s just as mind-altering as any of those. I would guess it’s just a matter of time, an oversight by the government based on Salvia’s relative unpopularity. That said, I don’t think any of the drugs listed above should be illegal. What a waste of time and money. We should save the “drug war” for meth and the like. ---
**Author:** ![TheVioletCreep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eb8c5e/32.png) [@TheVioletCreep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheVioletCreep)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/30 "2009-01-11T01:03:51Z")
Thanks for all the input, obtained some, nothing very good, hadn’t much money at the time. It was maybe a 15 minute floaty feeling, after using nearly half of what I bought. Terribly over-exaggerated. Unless they better stuff actually does live up…that I do not know. Not sure I care either. ---
**Author:** ![Teaira](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9d8465/32.png) [@Teaira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teaira)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/31 "2009-01-11T01:27:05Z")
> [@busterbloodvessel](#): > > I should have said, I can’t see why Salvia is legal while mushrooms, LSD, marijuana etc. are not. It’s just as mind-altering as any of those. I’d imagine it’s legal because most people find that they do not like salvia’s effects, and never try it more than once. It also lasts a much shorter amount of time than any of the other drugs you mentioned (15, 20 mins max versus 4+ hours). ---
**Author:** ![busterbloodvessel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9c0ed/32.png) [@busterbloodvessel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/busterbloodvessel)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/32 "2009-01-11T01:34:39Z")
> [@TheVioletCreep](#): > > Thanks for all the input, obtained some, nothing very good, hadn’t much money at the time. > It was maybe a 15 minute floaty feeling, after using nearly half of what I bought. > Terribly over-exaggerated. > Unless they better stuff actually does live up…that I do not know. > Not sure I care either. One strange thing about Salvia is there seems to be a reverse tolerance effect. The first 4 or 5 times I smoked it, I felt almost nothing. After that, it began to become more powerful. Make sure you hold the smoke in your lungs for as long as possible. When you think you need to exhale, wait a little more.. You should be feeling the effects before you exhale the smoke. ---
**Author:** ![Jettboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/85e7bf/32.png) [@Jettboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jettboy)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/33 "2009-01-11T02:32:50Z")
> [@busterbloodvessel](#): > > I should have said, I can’t see why Salvia is legal while mushrooms, LSD, marijuana etc. are not. It’s just as mind-altering as any of those. I would guess it’s just a matter of time, an oversight by the government based on Salvia’s relative unpopularity. I agree. There seems to be this mindset in government that if it gets anyone high, it _must_ be bad and made illegal as soon as possible. It doesn’t seem to matter if it’s actually dangerous or not, or if any serious scientific studies of it have been conducted. ---
**Author:** ![Todderbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309/34 "2009-01-11T10:53:34Z")
> [@busterbloodvessel](#): > > One strange thing about Salvia is there seems to be a reverse tolerance effect. The first 4 or 5 times I smoked it, I felt almost nothing. After that, it began to become more powerful. Make sure you hold the smoke in your lungs for as long as possible. When you think you need to exhale, wait a little more.. You should be feeling the effects before you exhale the smoke. My understand was that the effects you first feel when you exhale should be oxygen deprevation. Then you exhale and inhale, that goes away, and the salvia kicks in. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/salvia/480309.md?page=1)