View from Booth Pinnacle

Desert Tobacco (Nicotiana trigonophylla) photographed on Booth Pinnacle in Lake Mead Area, Nevada in December, 2005. Lake Mead is in view in distance. Tobacco was a sacred plant for most Native American groups. Smoking was done with a pipe that was made either of stone, clay or plant stem. Tobacco leaves were dried, grinded and often mixed with other plants, like for example manzanita or sage. All parts of desert tobacco contain the alkaloids nicotine and anabasine which are toxic.