Mimosa Hostilis: The Tree, Its Root Bark, and How It Is Sold

Mimosa hostilis, more correctly Mimosa tenuiflora, is a tree native to northeastern Brazil and parts of Mexico and Central America. Its root bark is traded internationally in large volume and sold under several names, which is where most of the confusion around it starts.

Naming

The accepted botanical name is Mimosa tenuiflora. Mimosa hostilis is an older synonym that remains in wide commercial use, and jurema and tepezcohuite are common regional names. All of these refer to the same tree.

Tepezcohuite in particular is worth knowing, because material sold under that name is usually aimed at the cosmetic and skin care trade and may be processed differently from material sold as root bark.

Inner Bark Versus Whole Bark

This is the distinction that matters most and the one most often glossed over. The inner root bark is the reddish-purple layer underneath the rough outer covering. Whole root bark includes both layers, and the outer layer contributes bulk without contributing much else.

Material sold as inner root bark should be noticeably uniform in color. A batch with a lot of grey or brown woody fragments mixed through it has not been separated carefully, whatever the listing says.

Forms

Shredded is the most common format. It is easy to inspect, which is the main argument for buying it over powder. Powdered material is milled fine and convenient, but once it is powder you cannot tell inner bark from whole bark by looking at it.

Whole bark strips are sold less often and require processing before most uses. They keep the best in storage because less surface area is exposed.

What Varies Between Lots

Origin is the biggest variable. Brazilian and Mexican material are both common and they are not identical in appearance or in reported composition. Harvest season and drying method both matter, and material dried poorly tends to look duller and smell musty.

Age matters too. Root bark is not a product that improves with time on a shelf, and old stock is a real issue in this trade because the material moves slowly through long supply chains.

Storage

Keep it dry, sealed and out of light. Moisture is the main problem, and shredded material sitting in a humid room will degrade noticeably over a season. Whole or shredded keeps better than powder.

What to Ask Before Buying

Ask for the species name in full. Ask whether it is inner root bark or whole root bark. Ask the country of origin and the harvest year. A seller who can answer those three questions directly is handling the material properly.

Entheogenic Emporium lists Mimosa tenuiflora by bark type and origin rather than under a single generic heading, so you know which material you are getting before it arrives.