TRENTON Concerned about its growing popularity and accessibility, New Jersey lawmakers are trying to ban a hallucinogenic herb easily bought on the Internet. Lawmakers in several states have called for a federal ban of Salvia divinorum, a type of sage, and at least seven states are trying to pass their own laws to criminalize its use and distribution. It’s already been banned in Louisiana, Missouri and Delaware and in countries such as Australia, Denmark and Italy. “We should take preventative steps now, before our children start using this product and before someone gets hurt,” said Assemblyman Jack Conners, D-Burlington, a sponsor of New Jersey’s bill to outlaw the plant. The measure would make Salvia a Schedule I controlled substance, placing it in the same category as heroin. Under the bill, it would be a felony to possess, use or distribute the plant. Penalties for possessing more than an ounce of the herb would be punishable by up to 10 years in jail and $150,000 in fines. The herb is easily available on the Internet and in stores that specialize in drug paraphernalia. Showing just how it easy it is to obtain, the bill’s sponsors held up a bag of Salvia their staff purchased online for $15, which included shipping costs. There are more than 1,000 kinds of Salvia, or sage, and many flowering varieties are used in landscaping. Salvia divinorum is a rare native of Mexico, where it’s known as “Maria Pastora,” or “Mary the Shepherdess.” The plant grows naturally only in Oaxaca state, where Mazatec Indians use it in rituals and as a healing agent. When smoked or chewed, it can cause effects ranging from a dreamlike state to an out-of-body experience. Some liken it to LSD. Federal drug agents say it is not widely used, and the federal Drug Enforcement Administration has listed it only as a “drug of concern.” The DEA has the authority to make Salvia illegal to buy over the counter and categorize it as a controlled substance, but often it is faster for states to pass their own laws. Legislators point to the death of an 17-year-old Delaware boy whose parents believe committed suicide after using the drug. Kathy and Dennis Chidester said their son was a happy, normal teenager who believed the plant was harmless because it was legal. He died from self-inflicted carbon monoxide poisoning in his garage. “We found a note that he wrote on the computer that said Salvia divinorum made him realize there was no point to being on Earth,” Kathy Chidester said Friday. “He had a lot to live for and I believe Salvia took that away from him.”