Morning Glory

What Is Morning Glory?

Morning glory, Ipomoea tricolor, is a fast-growing twining vine grown for its trumpet-shaped flowers, of which ‘Heavenly Blue’ is the best-known cultivar. Its seeds contain ergot alkaloids, chiefly ergine, also called LSA (lysergic acid amide) ^{1Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →}.

The plant is native to Mexico and is grown worldwide as an ornamental ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}. Its black seeds, tlitliltzin or badoh negro, were used in divination and healing in southern Mexico.

The seed alkaloids are made by a symbiotic fungus of the genus Periglandula that lives in the plant ^{2,3Reference 2Steiner et al. · 2018ReviewErgot alkaloids and their hallucinogenic potential in morning glories — reviewView study →Reference 3Hazel et al. · 2025A new species of Periglandula symbiotic with the morning glory Ipomoea tricolorView study →}. Their amount varies widely between seed lots and between single seeds ^{1Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →}.

Morning glory seeds are not the same as ololiuqui, the round seeds of the related liana Turbina corymbosa, which were also used ritually in Mesoamerica ^{19Reference 19Carod-Artal · 2015ReviewHallucinogenic drugs in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures — historical reviewView study →}.

How Is Morning Glory Used?

Morning glory is grown mainly as a garden climber, on trellises, fences and arbors ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}.

• Seeds, ritual use — the black seeds were taken for divination and healing in Mesoamerica.
• Seeds, recreational use — the seeds are sold as ornamental seed and eaten for their psychoactive effect, as reported by users in Poland and elsewhere ^{6Reference 6Juszczak et al. · 2013ObservationalRecreational use of D-lysergamide from the seeds of Argyreia nervosa, Ipomoea tricolor, Ipomoea violacea and Ipomoea purpurea in Poland — observational studyView study →}.
• Plant, agriculture — the plant is used in traditional Mexican agriculture to suppress weeds ^{11Reference 11Pereda-Miranda et al. · 1993In vitroTricolorin A, major phytogrowth inhibitor from Ipomoea tricolor — in vitroView study →}.

Botany

Morning glory is a twining herbaceous vine in the bindweed family (Convolvulaceae). It grows fast, climbing 2.5–3 m in a season by wrapping its stems around supports ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}.

The leaves are heart-shaped and softly hairy ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}. The trumpet-shaped flowers are blue, pink, purple or white, with a pale yellow centre and white streaks that form a star along the petals. They open in the morning and drop by evening ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}.

The fruit is a dry capsule that splits open, holding small black seeds with a hard coat ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}.

It is a perennial in its native Mexico and is grown as an annual elsewhere ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}. The genus Ipomoea also includes the sweet potato (I. batatas) and the morning glories I. purpurea and I. nil.

Distribution

Morning glory is native to Mexico ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}. It has been introduced across the tropics and subtropics, including Central and South America, the Caribbean, Africa, South Asia and Queensland, and in the United States it occurs in Arizona, Florida, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Texas ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}.

It self-seeds and can become weedy, and in some areas of the United States it is treated as a noxious weed ^{20Reference 20North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species databaseView study →}.

Growing Conditions

Cultivation snapshot for Morning Glory

Sunfull sun

Lifetender perennial grown as a warm-season annual; frost-free zones USDA 10–11.

Watermoderate; tolerates lean soil (over-rich soil favors leaf over flower).

Habitvigorous climber needing support; self-seeds freely.

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Traditional Uses

Mesoamerican Traditional Medicine

The black seeds of the morning glory, tlitliltzin in Nahuatl and badoh negro in Zapotec, were used as a sacred entheogen by the Aztecs and later by the Mazatec, Zapotec and other peoples of southern Mexico, for divination and healing. In much of the literature the plant is catalogued as Ipomoea violacea.

Ololiuqui, or badoh blanco, is a different plant: the round white seeds of Turbina corymbosa (Rivea corymbosa). The Olmec, Zapotec, Maya and Aztec used ololiuqui seeds, which contain lysergic acid amide, alongside peyote and psilocybin mushrooms ^{19Reference 19Carod-Artal · 2015ReviewHallucinogenic drugs in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures — historical reviewView study →}.

Phytochemistry

The seeds contain ergoline (ergot-type) indole alkaloids. The main ones are ergine (LSA, d-lysergic acid amide) with its isomer isoergine, and ergometrine (ergonovine) ^{1Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →}.

In two packs of ‘Heavenly Blue’ seed, ergine averaged about 260–300 µg/g of seed, roughly 0.03% of its weight, and ergometrine 40–94 µg/g. Single seeds ranged from below the detection limit to about twice the pack average ^{1Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →}.

The same analysis identified lysergic acid α-hydroxyethylamide and the clavine alkaloids penniclavine, chanoclavine and lysergol or one of its isomers ^{1Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →}. Of five packs of ornamental Ipomoea seed bought from different sellers, only the three ‘Heavenly Blue’ packs contained ergot alkaloids ^{1Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →}.

The alkaloids are produced by the symbiotic fungus, not by the plant. In I. tricolor the fungus, named Periglandula clandestina in 2025, is most abundant in the seedling stem, and the alkaloids occur in every tissue, including the roots ^{3Reference 3Hazel et al. · 2025A new species of Periglandula symbiotic with the morning glory Ipomoea tricolorView study →}.

The plant also contains resin glycosides. The main one, tricolorin A, was isolated from a chloroform extract of the plant as the compound behind its weed-suppressing effect ^{11Reference 11Pereda-Miranda et al. · 1993In vitroTricolorin A, major phytogrowth inhibitor from Ipomoea tricolor — in vitroView study →}.

Constituent Summary

Seed alkaloids, from two packs of ‘Heavenly Blue’ seed ^{1Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →}.

Pharmacology & Research

Most research on morning glory is analytical chemistry of the seed alkaloids and study of the fungus that makes them ^{1,2,3Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →Reference 2Steiner et al. · 2018ReviewErgot alkaloids and their hallucinogenic potential in morning glories — reviewView study →Reference 3Hazel et al. · 2025A new species of Periglandula symbiotic with the morning glory Ipomoea tricolorView study →}.

The human data are case reports, user reports and a small study of the related Hawaiian baby woodrose (Argyreia nervosa), whose seeds carry the same alkaloid, ergine ^{4,6,7,8,9,10Reference 4Paulke et al. · 2012Analysis of lysergic acid amide in human serum and urine after ingestion of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human validation studyView study →Reference 6Juszczak et al. · 2013ObservationalRecreational use of D-lysergamide from the seeds of Argyreia nervosa, Ipomoea tricolor, Ipomoea violacea and Ipomoea purpurea in Poland — observational studyView study →Reference 7Klinke et al. · 2010Case reportTwo cases of lysergamide intoxication by ingestion of seeds from Hawaiian Baby Woodrose — case reportsView study →Reference 8Kremer et al. · 2012Clinical trialVariable adverse effects in subjects after ingestion of equal doses of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human study terminated for toxicityView study →Reference 9Ponté et al. · 2017Case reportPsychoactive effects of ‘legal high’: about lysergic acid amide (LSA) — case seriesView study →Reference 10Legriel et al. · 2008Case reportLysergic acid amide-induced posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome with status epilepticus — case reportView study →}. No controlled trial of morning glory has been run.

The antibacterial and anti-cancer findings belong to tricolorin A, a resin glycoside of the plant, tested in the lab ^{11Reference 11Pereda-Miranda et al. · 1993In vitroTricolorin A, major phytogrowth inhibitor from Ipomoea tricolor — in vitroView study →}.

1. Psychedelic Activity

The main psychoactive constituent is ergine (LSA), an ergoline closely related in structure to LSD ^{1,4Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →Reference 4Paulke et al. · 2012Analysis of lysergic acid amide in human serum and urine after ingestion of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human validation studyView study →}.

In a German study, four volunteers ate Hawaiian baby woodrose (Argyreia nervosa) seeds to test the effect on driving. The study was stopped because three of the four had severe adverse effects: cardiovascular disturbance in two and a psychosis-like state in one. All recovered within nine hours ^{8Reference 8Kremer et al. · 2012Clinical trialVariable adverse effects in subjects after ingestion of equal doses of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human study terminated for toxicityView study →}.

Serum LSA in that study was 0.66–3.15 ng/mL about two hours after the seeds were eaten. These low levels went with nausea, weakness, fatigue, tremor, raised blood pressure and a psychosis-like state ^{4Reference 4Paulke et al. · 2012Analysis of lysergic acid amide in human serum and urine after ingestion of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human validation studyView study →}.

Users posting on a Polish drug-use website described effects from I. tricolor and I. violacea seeds comparable with those in medical case reports ^{6Reference 6Juszczak et al. · 2013ObservationalRecreational use of D-lysergamide from the seeds of Argyreia nervosa, Ipomoea tricolor, Ipomoea violacea and Ipomoea purpurea in Poland — observational studyView study →}.

In receptor-binding tests, ergine bound more weakly than LSD at every receptor tested, with its clearest affinity at 5-HT1A, 5-HT2 and α2-adrenergic receptors. Because the psychedelic effect in the human study was weak, the authors concluded that LSA should not be regarded as an LSD-like psychedelic ^{5Reference 5Paulke et al. · 2013Argyreia nervosa: receptor profiling of lysergic acid amide and other potential psychedelic LSD-like compounds by computational and in-vitro binding-assay approachesView study →}.

Classical psychedelics produce their effects mainly by activating the 5-HT2A receptor, and act at nearly every serotonin, dopamine and adrenergic receptor ^{13Reference 13Jain et al. · 2025In vitroThe polypharmacology of psychedelics reveals multiple targets for potential therapeutics — in vitro receptor profilingView study →}.

Gap: no controlled human dosing of morning glory seed exists, and almost all receptor data for ergine come from Argyreia nervosa.

2. Antibacterial

Tricolorin A, a resin glycoside from I. tricolor, inhibited Staphylococcus aureus in vitro with a minimum inhibitory concentration of 1.8 µg/mL ^{11Reference 11Pereda-Miranda et al. · 1993In vitroTricolorin A, major phytogrowth inhibitor from Ipomoea tricolor — in vitroView study →}.

Gap: a single 1993 study of an isolated compound, with no whole-extract or animal data.

3. Antiproliferative

In the same study, tricolorin A was toxic to cultured P-388 mouse leukaemia cells and a human breast-cancer line (ED50 2.2 µg/mL), and inhibited protein kinase C binding (IC50 43 µM) ^{11Reference 11Pereda-Miranda et al. · 1993In vitroTricolorin A, major phytogrowth inhibitor from Ipomoea tricolor — in vitroView study →}.

Gap: one in-vitro study, with no animal tumour models and no human data.

4. Cluster Headache

In the Clusterbusters medication-use survey (n = 496), respondents rated the indoleamine hallucinogens psilocybin, LSD and lysergic acid amide as comparable to or more effective than most conventional cluster-headache medicines. Infrequent and non-hallucinogenic doses were also reported to work ^{12Reference 12Schindler et al. · 2015ObservationalIndoleamine hallucinogens in cluster headache: results of the Clusterbusters medication-use survey — observational surveyView study →}.

Gap: this is self-reported survey data on the LSA class, not a trial of morning glory, and no controlled data exist.

Mechanisms

Ergine binds serotonin, adrenergic and dopamine receptors, with its clearest affinities at 5-HT1A, 5-HT2 and α2-adrenergic receptors, all weaker than LSD’s ^{5Reference 5Paulke et al. · 2013Argyreia nervosa: receptor profiling of lysergic acid amide and other potential psychedelic LSD-like compounds by computational and in-vitro binding-assay approachesView study →}. Ergometrine is a strong stimulant of the uterus ^{14Reference 14de Groot et al. · 1998ReviewErgot alkaloids: current status and review of clinical pharmacology and therapeutic use compared with other oxytocics in obstetrics and gynaecology — reviewView study →}.

Tricolorin A, a resin glycoside of the plant, has been studied separately for its antibacterial activity and its inhibition of protein kinase C ^{11Reference 11Pereda-Miranda et al. · 1993In vitroTricolorin A, major phytogrowth inhibitor from Ipomoea tricolor — in vitroView study →}.

Clinical Trials

No registered clinical trials of Ipomoea tricolor seed or its preparations were identified. The randomised-trial literature on ergometrine concerns the isolated drug.

Last checked: July 2026.

Dosage

Morning glory seed has no therapeutic or research dose. The alkaloid content varies widely between packs and between single seeds, from below the detection limit to about twice the pack average, which raises the risk of overdose ^{1Reference 1Nowak et al. · 2016Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation studyView study →}.

In Mesoamerican ritual use the ground seed was taken without a standardised dose.

Safety & Pregnancy

Morning glory seeds are a psychoactive entheogen, not a casual remedy. They cause heavy nausea, can raise blood pressure sharply, and vary widely in strength.

Full Safety Detail

Physical effects. In the terminated Hawaiian baby woodrose study, serum LSA in the low nanogram range went with nausea, weakness, fatigue, tremor and raised blood pressure ^{4Reference 4Paulke et al. · 2012Analysis of lysergic acid amide in human serum and urine after ingestion of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human validation studyView study →}. Reactions varied widely between people given the same dose per kilogram ^{8Reference 8Kremer et al. · 2012Clinical trialVariable adverse effects in subjects after ingestion of equal doses of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human study terminated for toxicityView study →}.

Blood pressure and the brain. One patient developed posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome, with seizures and hypertensive encephalopathy, after taking LSA, and recovered fully after treatment for blood pressure and seizures ^{10Reference 10Legriel et al. · 2008Case reportLysergic acid amide-induced posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome with status epilepticus — case reportView study →}.

Mental effects. One of the four study volunteers had a psychosis-like state ^{8Reference 8Kremer et al. · 2012Clinical trialVariable adverse effects in subjects after ingestion of equal doses of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human study terminated for toxicityView study →}. Two users reported suicidal thoughts after taking Hawaiian baby woodrose or Ipomoea seeds ^{6Reference 6Juszczak et al. · 2013ObservationalRecreational use of D-lysergamide from the seeds of Argyreia nervosa, Ipomoea tricolor, Ipomoea violacea and Ipomoea purpurea in Poland — observational studyView study →}.

Deaths. One person died in a fall from a building after eating Hawaiian baby woodrose seeds, with alcohol and cannabis also in his blood ^{7Reference 7Klinke et al. · 2010Case reportTwo cases of lysergamide intoxication by ingestion of seeds from Hawaiian Baby Woodrose — case reportsView study →}. French addiction monitoring notes other serious LSA poisonings, including a death ^{9Reference 9Ponté et al. · 2017Case reportPsychoactive effects of ‘legal high’: about lysergic acid amide (LSA) — case seriesView study →}.

Treated seed. Seed sold for gardens may be coated with fungicides, insecticides or other agents, which adds a hazard separate from the alkaloids.

Animal feeding. In a 90-day study, rats fed diets with 8% field-variety morning glory seed had higher mortality (40% of males, 10% of females), and the females had more liver degeneration. At 0.8% seed, the only change was lower final body weight in females ^{15Reference 15Dugan et al. · 1990AnimalToxicological evaluation of morning glory seed: subchronic 90-day feeding study — rat/animalView study →}.

Cancer. An old concern that lysergamides cause cancer is not supported by recent population data ^{17Reference 17Barnett et al. · 2022ObservationalIs psychedelic use associated with cancer? Interrogating a half-century-old claim using contemporary population-level data — observational epidemiologyView study →}.

Interactions. No drug-interaction studies exist for I. tricolor. The concern with vasoconstrictive and serotonergic drugs rests on pharmacology.

References

1. Nowak, J., Woźniakiewicz, M., Klepacki, P., Sowa, A., & Kościelniak, P. (2016). Identification and determination of ergot alkaloids in Morning Glory cultivars — validation study. Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26873205/
2. Steiner, U., & Leistner, E. (2018). Ergot alkaloids and their hallucinogenic potential in morning glories — review. Planta Medica. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29499587/
3. Hazel, C. M., & Panaccione, D. G. (2025). A new species of Periglandula symbiotic with the morning glory Ipomoea tricolor. Mycologia. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40261263/
4. Paulke, A., Kremer, C., Wunder, C., & Toennes, S. W. (2012). Analysis of lysergic acid amide in human serum and urine after ingestion of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human validation study. Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22695498/
5. Paulke, A., Kremer, C., Wunder, C., et al. (2013). Argyreia nervosa: receptor profiling of lysergic acid amide and other potential psychedelic LSD-like compounds by computational and in-vitro binding-assay approaches. Journal of Ethnopharmacology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23665164/
6. Juszczak, G. R., & Swiergiel, A. H. (2013). Recreational use of D-lysergamide from the seeds of Argyreia nervosa, Ipomoea tricolor, Ipomoea violacea and Ipomoea purpurea in Poland — observational study. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23662334/
7. Klinke, H. B., Müller, I. B., Steffenrud, S., & Dahl-Sørensen, R. (2010). Two cases of lysergamide intoxication by ingestion of seeds from Hawaiian Baby Woodrose — case reports. Forensic Science International. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20018470/
8. Kremer, C., Paulke, A., Wunder, C., & Toennes, S. W. (2012). Variable adverse effects in subjects after ingestion of equal doses of Argyreia nervosa seeds — human study terminated for toxicity. Forensic Science International. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21803515/
9. Ponté, C., & Lapeyre-Mestre, M. (2017). Psychoactive effects of ‘legal high’: about lysergic acid amide (LSA) — case series. Therapie. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28457570/
10. Legriel, S., Bruneel, F., Spreux-Varoquaux, O., et al. (2008). Lysergic acid amide-induced posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome with status epilepticus — case report. Neurocritical Care. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18446448/
11. Pereda-Miranda, R., Mata, R., Anaya, A. L., Wickramaratne, D. B., Pezzuto, J. M., & Kinghorn, A. D. (1993). Tricolorin A, major phytogrowth inhibitor from Ipomoea tricolor — in vitro. Journal of Natural Products. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8496705/
12. Schindler, E. A., Gottschalk, C. H., Weil, M. J., Shapiro, R. E., Wright, D. A., & Sewell, R. A. (2015). Indoleamine hallucinogens in cluster headache: results of the Clusterbusters medication-use survey — observational survey. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26595349/
13. Jain, M. K., Gumpper, R. H., Slocum, S. T., et al. (2025). The polypharmacology of psychedelics reveals multiple targets for potential therapeutics — in vitro receptor profiling. Neuron. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40683247/
14. de Groot, A. N., van Dongen, P. W., Vree, T. B., Hekster, Y. A., & van Roosmalen, J. (1998). Ergot alkaloids: current status and review of clinical pharmacology and therapeutic use compared with other oxytocics in obstetrics and gynaecology — review. Drugs. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9806101/
15. Dugan, G. M., & Gumbmann, M. R. (1990). Toxicological evaluation of morning glory seed: subchronic 90-day feeding study — rat/animal. Food and Chemical Toxicology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2242829/
16. Cook, D., Lee, S. T., Panaccione, D. G., Leadmon, C. E., Clay, K., & Gardner, D. R. (2019). Biodiversity of Convolvulaceous species that contain ergot alkaloids, indole diterpene alkaloids and swainsonine. Biochemical Systematics and Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bse.2019.103921
17. Barnett, B. S., Ziegler, K., Doblin, R., & Carlo, A. D. (2022). Is psychedelic use associated with cancer? Interrogating a half-century-old claim using contemporary population-level data — observational epidemiology. Journal of Psychopharmacology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35971893/
18. Nair, S., Bhat, D., Hebbar, S., et al. (2026). Methylergometrine-induced acute coronary vasospasm in a postpartum patient — case report. BMJ Case Reports. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41734958/
19. Carod-Artal, F. J. (2015). Hallucinogenic drugs in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures — historical review. Neurología, 30(1), 42–49. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21893367/
20. North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. Ipomoea tricolor — description, native range and toxicity — species database. NC State Extension. https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/ipomoea-tricolor/

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