Wild lettuce: a 10 ml alkaloid extract of Lactuca virosa
Lactuca virosa belongs to the daisy family and is therefore a relative of garden lettuce. It grows as a biennial: a leaf rosette in the first year, then a sturdy, often purple-flushed stem that can reach two metres, carrying small yellow flower heads from July to September. The species grows along the British coast and across central and southern Europe. Cut into a stem and a milky white sap runs out that browns in the air and dries to a resinous mass, which apothecaries called lactucarium. Lactucin and lactucopicrin are among the compounds described from the plant.
No plant material remains in this bottle. Alkaloid extracts are sold as TPA extracts, short for Total Purified Alkaloids: extraction isolates the alkaloids from the herb, which are then dissolved in ethanol and water. No sugar, no flavouring, no plant residue goes in. This label shows no percentage, unlike some other bottles in the range. With the dried herb you brew an infusion and put up with the bitterness; here you measure drop by drop instead.
Composition
- Alkaloids of Lactuca virosa
- Alcohol
- Water
The bottle
You receive a white 10 ml bottle with a wood-look cap holding a pipette. The label reads WILD LETTUCE T.P.A., the botanical name LACTUCA VIROSA and the line 10 ML, 200+ DROPS. Keep the bottle upright, cool and dark, and out of reach of children. The base contains alcohol, so close the cap firmly after use.
Points to note
This extract is meant for adults of 18 and over and not for use during pregnancy or breastfeeding. If you take medication, or hesitate for any other reason, talk to your doctor first. Avalon Magic Plants makes no statements about medicinal effects: this is not a medicine and it replaces no treatment.
Avalon Magic Plants also sells wild lettuce as dried herb in 20 gram bags. From the same TPA range you will find St John's wort 20%, valerian with GABA, white water lily and wild dagga. Every order leaves discreetly packed.
