Plants of the Gods: S7E3. Part Two —The Ethnobotany of Salvia with Dr. Chris McCurdy
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
Release Date: 07/02/2025
Plants of the Gods: S8E4 The research behind microdosing and medicine (Dr. Pamela Kryskow, Part 2)
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
In this episode, we’re bringing you the second half of our conversation with Dr. Pamela Kryskow. A co-leader of the largest study on microdosing, she shares what researchers are beginning to understand about how psychedelic plants could treat conditions ranging from Parkinson’s disease and chronic pain to existential distress. But, with so much potential for these plant medicines, there’s also the potential for misuse and misinformation. We delve into some of the ways psychedelics could be ethically integrated into patient care, and, what the hospital of the...
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Plants of the Gods: S8E3 Can Psychedelics Treat “Incurable” Trauma? (Dr. Pamela Kryskow, Part 1)
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
How can psylocibin be used to help patients work through traumas that once seemed untreatable? Dr. Pamela Kryskow, a self-described “fungi person” and a scientist, is helping to answer this question and others about the health potential of plant medicines. Dr. Kryskow is a founding board member of the Psychedelic Association of Canada and the medical chair of the Vancouver Island University Post Graduate Certificate in Psychedelic Medicine assisted Therapy. She is also the medical lead for the Roots To Thrive Program. In this episode, Dr. Kryskow discusses...
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Plants of the Gods: S8E2 Dennis McKenna on new discoveries and emerging psychedelic science (part 2)
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
This is a special joint episode of Plants of the Gods and Brainforest Café. Host Dr. Mark Plotkin continues his conversation with ethnopharmacologist Dr. Dennis McKenna. They reflect on the origins and impact of the ESPD conferences, launched in 1967, and how these landmark gatherings helped shape the field of ethnopharmacology. The discussion also explores the enduring legacy of Richard Evans Schultes and his profound influence on ethnobotany. Dennis emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary research and the respectful...
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Plants of the Gods: S8E1 Dennis McKenna on the remarkable Amazonian plants that shape human consciousness (part 1)
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
This is a special joint episode of Plants of the Gods and Brainforest Café. Plants are virtuoso chemists. Some create molecules that closely resemble the neurotransmitters shaping human consciousness — a mystery that fascinates ethnopharmacologist Dennis McKenna, PhD. In Part One of this episode, Dennis explains why psychoactive plants are powerful tools for understanding the relationship between the brain and the mind, and reflects on the legacy of his late brother, Terence McKenna, whose work pushed the boundaries of psychedelic thought. The...
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Coming Soon: Plants of the Gods Season 8
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
Season 8 kicks off February 23 with an interview featuring Dennis McKenna, PhD — a renowned ethnopharmacologist who has spent more than 40 years researching the therapeutic potential of Amazonian plant medicines. Stay tuned for the full interview!
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Plants of the Gods: S7E10. When Plants Speak: Exploring Ayahuasca with Rebekah Senanayake
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
Join Plants of the Gods as we explore the mysteries of ayahuasca with ethnobotanist Rebekah Senanayake. Through years of fieldwork with traditional indigenous masters in the northwest Amazon, Rebekah has learned how people connect with plants in profound and transformative ways. In this episode, she shares insights on ayahuasca healing, visions, and the subtle language of plants.
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Plants of the Gods: S7E9. Spice - A New Book by Roger Crowley
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
In this episode of Plants of the Gods, ethnobotanist Dr. Mark Plotkin takes us on a sweeping journey through the epic history of the spice trade—one of the most transformative chapters in global history. From ancient trade routes and religious rituals to colonial conquests and modern capitalism, spices like cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, and cloves have shaped agriculture, medicine, navigation, and even warfare. Dr. Plotkin also reviews Roger Crowley’s gripping new book, Spice: The 16th-Century Contest That Shaped the Modern World.
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Plants of the Gods: S7E8. Psychonauts: A New Book by Mike Jay
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
The Plants of the Gods podcast has pioneered the concept of mind-altering substances not being merely hallucinogens but also "ideogens," substances that generate new ideas and creative concepts. Nowhere was this more evident than among artists and the scientists in 19th-century Europe, from Sigmund Freud to Samuel Taylor Coleridge to William James. This episode details this much-overlooked chapter in modern history and discusses a recent book by cultural historian Mike Jay on this topic.
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Plants of the Gods: S7E7. The Ethnobotany of Brugmansia, the Tree of the Evil Eagle.
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
Ethnobotanist Dr. Mark Plotkin discusses Brugmansia, some of the most beautiful hallucinogenic plants in the botanical world. Their bright flowers hang like sacred trumpets and have long been used by traditional healers of the Andes-Amazon region as an important component of their medicine chest. Closely related to the ‘hexing herbs’ of European witches of the Middle Ages (as detailed in an earlier episode), these fascinating plants can heal - or harm.
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Plants of the Gods: S7E6. The Ethnobotany of the Spice Trade: How it Built the Modern World
The Plants of the Gods: Hallucinogens, Healing, Culture and Conservation
The spice trade was one of the most influential economic and cultural forces that shaped the modern world. It profoundly impacted cultural exchange, cartographic knowledge and technology, cuisine, spycraft, and medicine. The spice trade strengthened mercantile capitalism and spread both Islam and Christianity while destroying indigenous cultures and tropical rainforests. This episode examines the spice trade from an ethnobotanical perspective. Hobhouse, Henry. Seeds of Wealth: Four Plants That Made Men Rich. 1st Shoemaker & Hoard ed., Shoemaker & Hoard, 2004. Levetin, Estelle,...
info_outlineA mind-blowing mint? Salvia divinorum, a perennial herb in the mint family, has been used by traditional healers in Oaxaca, Mexico, to understand more about what ails a patient. Known for its potent psychoactive effects, Salvia can induce dysphoria and dissociation. But new scientific research is shedding light on the plant's unique effect on the brain, and its potential in treating psychiatric disorders. We continue our conversation with Dr. Chris McCurdy, a medicinal chemist and behavioral pharmacologist at the University of Florida, who is one of the foremost experts on this plant of the gods.
Show notes:
Babu, Kavita M, et al. “Opioid Receptors and Legal Highs: Salvia Divinorum and Kratom.” National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Feb. 2008, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18259963/.