DMT doesn’t come from one special tree. It is a naturally occurring compound found in many unrelated plants, from trees to shrubs to grasses. When people say DMT is “made from a tree,” they usually mean the Brazilian jurema tree, Mimosa tenuiflora, or certain Australian acacias.1Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology. Jurema-Preta (Mimosa tenuiflora [Willd.] Poir.): a review of its traditional use, phytochemistry and pharmacology The plant in the world’s best-known DMT drink, ayahuasca, is not a tree at all but a leafy rainforest shrub.2Journal of the Brazilian Chemical Society. Influence of Environmental Factors and Cultural Methods on the Content of N,N‑Dimethyltryptamine in Psychotria viridis (Rubiaceae)
Mimosa Tenuiflora, the Tree Most People Mean
Mimosa tenuiflora is a thorny small tree of dry northeastern Brazil, known locally as jurema-preta. It is also sold and discussed under an older name, Mimosa hostilis, and in Mexico it goes by tepescohuite.3PubMed. Extraction of N, N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) from Mimosa tenuiflora, syn. Mimosa hostilis (Tepescohuite) using supercritical CO(2) and study of its surface activity DMT is the main active compound in extracts of the tree.4PubMed. Extraction of N, N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) from Mimosa tenuiflora, syn. Mimosa hostilis (Tepescohuite) using supercritical CO(2) and study of its surface activity
The tree carries DMT in its leaves, flowers and bark, but in very different amounts.5PubMed. Variation in the accumulation levels of N,N-dimethyltryptamine in micropropagated trees and in in vitro cultures of Mimosa tenuiflora Flowers held as little as 0.01% of their dried weight as DMT, while bark held up to 0.33%.6PubMed. Variation in the accumulation levels of N,N-dimethyltryptamine in micropropagated trees and in in vitro cultures of Mimosa tenuiflora Levels also shifted with the season of collection and the age of the tree,7PubMed. Variation in the accumulation levels of N,N-dimethyltryptamine in micropropagated trees and in in vitro cultures of Mimosa tenuiflora so two pieces of bark from the same species can differ a lot in strength.
That is why “root bark” comes up so often in online talk of this tree. The bark, including the bark of the roots, is the part with the most DMT, and traditional jurema wine is made from root bark, not leaves. Online sellers often market dried bark under the name Mimosa hostilis, but a label names the plant, not the chemistry, so two bags can differ a lot in strength unless a lab report comes with them.
This tree is also not the garden “mimosa” many people know. The pink-flowered garden mimosa, or silk tree, is a different plant, and the touch-me-not “sensitive plant” is another Mimosa species that isn’t jurema. Common names overlap, so only the scientific name Mimosa tenuiflora reliably points to the DMT tree.
Indigenous peoples of northeastern Brazil have long used jurema for healing and divination.8Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology. Jurema-Preta (Mimosa tenuiflora [Willd.] Poir.): a review of its traditional use, phytochemistry and pharmacology The Pankararé people make a drink called “wine of jurema” from the root, which they believe connects them to ancestral spirits.9Revista Ouricuri. ETHNOGRAPHIC NOTES ON THE USE OF JUREM A (MIMOSA TENUIFLORA) (WILLD.) POIR. BY THE PANKARARE INDIANS (NORTHEAST BRAZIL) Jurema rituals were once thought extinct but are still practiced.10MAPS. Jurema Ritual in Northern Brazil The tree also has a place in science: the first person to show DMT causes hallucinations, in 1956, used an extract of this tree.11PubMed Central. N, N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), an Endogenous Hallucinogen: Past, Present, and Future Research to Determine Its Role and Function
Ayahuasca Gets Its DMT From a Shrub
Psychotria viridis, an Amazonian understory shrub often called chacruna, is one of the plants that makes DMT.12Journal of the Brazilian Chemical Society. Influence of Environmental Factors and Cultural Methods on the Content of N,N‑Dimethyltryptamine in Psychotria viridis (Rubiaceae) Its leaves are boiled with the Banisteriopsis caapi vine to make ayahuasca, used in ritual and healing.13Journal of the Brazilian Chemical Society. Influence of Environmental Factors and Cultural Methods on the Content of N,N‑Dimethyltryptamine in Psychotria viridis (Rubiaceae) DMT is the main compound behind the brew’s effects.14PubMed Central. Influence of environmental conditions and seasonality on the metabolome and lipidome of Psychotria viridis leaves The pairing is old: a 1,000-year-old South American ritual bundle held traces of both DMT and harmine, ayahuasca’s two key ingredients.15PubMed Central. Chemical evidence for the use of multiple psychotropic plants in a 1,000-year-old ritual bundle from South America The vine contributes no DMT. It supplies compounds such as harmine and harmaline that act differently.16PubMed Central. Neurobiological research on N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and its potentiation by monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibition: from ayahuasca to synthetic combinations of DMT and MAO inhibitors
Many people assume the vine, the namesake ingredient, holds the DMT, but the vine’s job is to stop the body breaking it down. Without both plants the drink would have little effect.
The reason is that DMT swallowed on its own is almost inactive, because the gut and liver break it down quickly.17PubMed Central. Neurobiological research on N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and its potentiation by monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibition: from ayahuasca to synthetic combinations of DMT and MAO inhibitors An enzyme called monoamine oxidase (MAO) destroys it before it reaches the brain.18PubMed Central. Neurobiological research on N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and its potentiation by monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibition: from ayahuasca to synthetic combinations of DMT and MAO inhibitors The vine’s compounds are MAO inhibitors, substances that block that enzyme. Blocking it makes the DMT last longer and reach the body in much larger amounts.19PubMed Central. Neurobiological research on N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and its potentiation by monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibition: from ayahuasca to synthetic combinations of DMT and MAO inhibitors
Ayahuasca is made by boiling the shrub’s leaves together with pieces of the vine in water for hours, which pulls the compounds from both plants into one liquid. The result is a thick, bitter brew that is drunk.
The leaves vary too. DMT in them rises and falls through the day, peaking around 6 p.m.20PubMed Central. Influence of environmental conditions and seasonality on the metabolome and lipidome of Psychotria viridis leaves One idea is that the compound helps protect leaves from strong sunlight.21PubMed Central. Influence of environmental conditions and seasonality on the metabolome and lipidome of Psychotria viridis leaves Growing conditions and season also change the leaves’ chemistry.22PubMed Central. Influence of environmental conditions and seasonality on the metabolome and lipidome of Psychotria viridis leaves
The blocking ingredient creates a safety issue. MAO inhibitors can interact dangerously with some antidepressants and other medicines that raise serotonin. Anyone taking such medicines should talk to a doctor before any contact with ayahuasca-type brews. Before any ceremony, tell organizers about every medicine you take, and ask how the brew is prepared and what plants it contains.
Acacias and Other DMT Trees
When 79 Australian acacia species were tested, 51 contained DMT.23Australian Journal of Forensic Sciences. The identification of psychedelic compounds within Australian Acacia species 41 of those had never before been known to contain it.24Australian Journal of Forensic Sciences. The identification of psychedelic compounds within Australian Acacia species Several species carry enough in their leaves to explain reports of psychedelic effects.25PubMed Central. Rumors of Psychedelics, Psychotropics and Related Derivatives in Vachellia and Senegalia in Contrast with Verified Records in Australian Acacia Acacia maidenii is the richest confirmed acacia source, and others run lower.26PubMed Central. Rumors of Psychedelics, Psychotropics and Related Derivatives in Vachellia and Senegalia in Contrast with Verified Records in Australian Acacia “Richest” is a comparison among the acacias tested, not a guarantee for any single tree.
Not every acacia extract is the same. Acacias also contain a close chemical cousin of DMT.27PubMed Central. Rumors of Psychedelics, Psychotropics and Related Derivatives in Vachellia and Senegalia in Contrast with Verified Records in Australian Acacia The ratio of DMT to this cousin differs between species, so effects differ too.28PubMed Central. Rumors of Psychedelics, Psychotropics and Related Derivatives in Vachellia and Senegalia in Contrast with Verified Records in Australian Acacia
Popular claims that related African and American trees once grouped as acacias (now Vachellia and Senegalia) contain DMT are mostly unverified rumor.29PubMed Central. Rumors of Psychedelics, Psychotropics and Related Derivatives in Vachellia and Senegalia in Contrast with Verified Records in Australian Acacia Amounts differ between species and even individual trees, so a tree on a “DMT plant” list may hold little or none. Testing, not reputation, is the only way to know.
South American snuffs called epéna are made from the bark of Virola trees.30PubMed. Pharmepéna-Psychonautics: Human intranasal, sublingual and oral pharmacology of 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyl-tryptamine These snuffs are tied to 5-MeO-DMT, a related but distinct compound.31PubMed. Pharmepéna-Psychonautics: Human intranasal, sublingual and oral pharmacology of 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyl-tryptamine It acts on different brain receptors and is described as producing little imagery but a loss of sense of self.32The Psychedelic Journal. 5-MeO-DMT vs DMT: Differences, Effects & Legality Sources sold as “DMT plants” may actually contain 5-MeO-DMT instead, and the reported effects are very different: visual for DMT, loss of self for 5-MeO-DMT.
DMT Beyond Trees
Phalaris aquatica, a common pasture grass, contains DMT and related compounds.33Australian Journal of Agricultural Research. Comparative levels of dimethyltryptamine- and tyramine-related alkaloid toxins in Australian cultivars and some wild populations of Phalaris aquatica It occasionally poisons grazing livestock,34Australian Journal of Agricultural Research. Comparative levels of dimethyltryptamine- and tyramine-related alkaloid toxins in Australian cultivars and some wild populations of Phalaris aquatica and levels differ between grass varieties and wild populations.35Australian Journal of Agricultural Research. Comparative levels of dimethyltryptamine- and tyramine-related alkaloid toxins in Australian cultivars and some wild populations of Phalaris aquatica
Animals make related compounds too. The cane toad has its own enzyme for making DMT-type compounds.36PubMed Central. Reconstituting a two-step pathway for N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) biosynthesis in bacteria Rat studies suggest DMT is made inside the brain itself rather than carried there from other organs.37PubMed Central. Biosynthesis and Extracellular Concentrations of N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in Mammalian Brain Whether this happens the same way in people, and what it does, is still unproven.38PubMed Central. Biosynthesis and Extracellular Concentrations of N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in Mammalian Brain The amounts found are tiny compared with a psychoactive dose.
Plants make DMT from tryptophan, an ordinary building block of protein, in a few steps.39PubMed Central. Reconstituting a two-step pathway for N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) biosynthesis in bacteria The genes for these steps have been identified in the ayahuasca shrub, Psychotria viridis.40PubMed Central. Complete biosynthesis of psychedelic tryptamines from three kingdoms in plants Scientists have put the same steps into bacteria to make DMT in a lab.41PubMed Central. Reconstituting a two-step pathway for N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) biosynthesis in bacteria
DMT sold as a drug may be extracted from plants or made synthetically. It was first made in a lab in 1931, before it was found in plants. Buyers can’t tell the source or purity by looking.
Is It Legal to Have These Plants or Drinks
DMT is listed in Schedule I of the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances, the strictest category.42ICEERS. Ayahuasca and the Law Countries that follow it agree to limit DMT to medical and scientific use.43ICEERS. Ayahuasca and the Law But the ayahuasca brew itself is not on the international lists.44ICEERS. Ayahuasca and the Law The treaty does not itself ban the drink or the plants, which leaves each country to decide how to treat them. That is why the same brew can be handled very differently in two neighboring countries.
Some national laws control any preparation that contains a listed substance, which can bring a DMT-bearing brew or bark under drug rules. Other places regulate only the extracted compound and leave the raw plant alone. Some countries treat any DMT-containing plant or drink as illegal, while ornamental plants like acacias are often legal to grow even though extracting DMT from them is not.
“Not scheduled internationally” does not mean legal everywhere. Some countries have prosecuted ayahuasca use under DMT laws, and religious-use exemptions exist in some places but are narrow. Traveling with brew or bark across borders adds risk.
Bark sold online as Mimosa hostilis is often listed as a natural dye or skin-care ingredient. Possession rules can depend on intended use, and customs may seize shipments even where sale is open. Check your own country or state law before buying bark or brews online.