Natural stimulants

This is just a seedling which can grow into a tree in the right conditions but remains as a shrub in other places. Catha edulis grows along the entire Eastern edge of Africa, from North to South and it is a natural source of methcathinone. Chemically synthesised, it is known as the party drug "Cat" and locally, it is known as Bushman's tea. Further North, it is known as Khat, Qat or Mira. Chewing the leaves of this tree is a time-honoured social custom in North-East Africa and Yemen. It's said that the Somali civil war in the 1990s was fought by soldiers high on the leaves and the supply-planes that carried the leaves were never shot down.

Khat is similar to strong coffee and it is related to amphetamines pharmacologically. I quite enjoy chewing the leaves although they are bitter and hard, even though it is only the tender young leaf tips that are picked for consumption. It will be a while before this little plant grows to anything like a harvestable size. I'll keep it as a bush, though. Khat has been made illegal in some parts of the world and although you may not grow it for selling, it isn't illegal to grow the plants in your yard.

First posted here on my blog in WeKu