Aya ♈️🌱

10 Helpful & Magickal Herbs for Witchy… Witchcraft.

If you’re a Green Witch or just have a penchant for herbalism and herbal witchcraft, this is a helpful list of herbs that are always good to have in your cupboards, or jars… or shelves.

Basil: Primarily, Basil is known as a culinary herb (add a dash of it to your dishes to add a little class and flavour!), but it also has some interesting and broad magickal properties. For example, it can be burned or strewn on the floors and thresholds of the home to purify and protect. It can be used in magick that concerns love/relationships and it can be used in divination. Old lore states that Basil can aid in both astral travel and projection, and physical travel. It is said to bring luck to those who are moving or transitioning to somewhere new, and is used in the detection of infidelity and the affirmation of fidelity.

Lavender: Lavender, unlike Basil, is not used primarily for cooking but it can be! Lavender and vanilla shortbread cookies are just divine. In magickal terms, this herb is often used in love spells and love magick, or in any sort of ritual that brings about peace and/or a state of calmness in life and in you.  Lavender can be strewn on floors and thresholds to protect from evil and can be used in purification magick/spells/rituals/baths and for smudging. It can soothe headaches and aid sleep when the buds are placed in a sachet or beneath your pillow.

Sage: Historically - very, historically! - Sage has been burned to cleanse and purify spaces; it is used still in smudging rituals* and the herb is often burned in incense to cleanse, purify and protect. It can also be used in healing rituals. A warning, though: when being burned, Sage emits a potent odour that is very much like that of marijuana!

Patchouli: Patouchli has an exotic aroma and is commonly used in incense, potpourri and ritual workings. This herb has strong ties to sexual power, wealth and love and is thus used in workings regarding those.  If you were to carry a small sachet of Patchouli leaves on your person, whether that is hung around your neck or stashed in your pocket, you will attract love, wealth and yes, sex into your life.

Mugwort: Mugwort is found and used frequently in modern Pagan and witchcraft workings as it is a very versatile and easy to grow (or obtain) herb. It can be used in an incense blend, in general spellwork; sachets and in smudging rituals. It is often tied with prophecy and divination. For example; to encourage success in divination, create an incense blend with mugwort, or use it in a smudging ritual to cleanse your work space of negative energies, and purify it before use. NOTE: Can be harmful to pregnant women.

Bay (leaves): Like some of the aforementioned items, Bay is a culinary herb. It is used not only in cooking, but for protection, purification, strength, healing and the enhancement of psychic power. If you write a wish or a desire on a bay leaf and burn it on a candle flame, it is said that the smoke will carry your desires to your respective deities and they will manifest, though not always in the way you would expect. Bay, if placed in a dream pillow, wards of negativity and induces prophetic dreams.

Chamomile: Known for its protective and purifying properties, Chamomile can be used in incense blends for sleep and meditation. It is, of course, a popular herbal tea that promotes peace and sleep. If you wish to protect your person or your household from psychic attacks, sprinkle Chamomile around your home.

Rosemary: Rosemary, yet another culinary herb, has been used historically for myriad purposes. In short, it is a herb of protection, love, lust, mental clarity, purification, healing, banishing, and cleansing. It’s pretty much multi-purpose.  Burn Rosemary to rid a space of negative energy, or hang it in the home to prevent evil in all its forms from crossing the threshold and entering. This herb is like a clear quartz crystal or a white candle; it can be used as a substitute for other herbs and you will still obtain good results.

Cinnamon: Oh, look! Another culinary herb! Cinnamon is versatile in that it is easy to obtain and very easy to use. It promotes spirituality, success, healing, psychic powers, lust, love, and protection, much like Rosemary, and can be used in incense blends, but (and this is the best part) it can be baked into sweets and desserts! It can be used in sachets too, or hung in the home to protect those inside.

Pennyroyal: Pennyroyal is often associated with money, strength and protection. In Hoodoo and some branches of folk magic/k, Pennyroyal is carried to ward of what is known as the ‘evil eye’. If you wish to utilise Pennyroyal’s protective properties, put some of the herb in a sachet with whatever else you feel you need and carry it on your person. For the best effect, your purse/bag or your pockets would work best.  If you wish to work money magick, use it to create some Money Oil or hang a sprig over your door to attract it into your life. If you are a business owner, hanging a sprig over the door will attract new custom. NOTE: Can be harmful to pregnant women.

Disclaimer: This is all based on my research, path, opinion & experiences! Intro: I really was holding out on doing this post because it’s such a big, important topic to cover and I really don’t want to mess it up or get anything wrong. This post needs to be done though, people have asked if I have such a post and an anon suggested it. So finally, here it is.  - What Is Warding?: Warding is a type of magick, it is the act of creating an energetic barrier around you, your home, an object, ect. They can be temporary or permanent, although typically they are cast with the long term in mind. They can banish or turn away whatever you choose. Warding is an excellent skill to have because it can keep you, and even others safe and with practice you can do it anytime with just about whatever you have on hand.  When Should I Ward?: Whenever you want an energetic barrier around you, most people consistently ward their home, themselves or their place of practice. Some people even ward their space every time they prepare for a spell. It should be done consistently in any area you want protected, but exactly where and how often is entirely up to the practitioner.  What Should I Do Before?: Cleanse, a ward is a barrier of energy and in the same way that it keeps things out it also keeps things in. You don’t want to trap anything inside of it. Cleanse yourself before you ward yourself. Cleanse your space before you ward your space!  Tips Before You Ward: Phrasing:  Keep the phrasing in mind! You don’t want to keep anything out that you want in, or let something in that you want out. If you’re chanting or using sigils ect keep in mind exactly what you want to keep out both in your methods and in your mind. Covering everything:  Make sure to cover everything, a ward is useless if there’s a weakness in it or if the ceiling & floor aren’t probably covered. Be super thorough!  Layering Your Wards: One small little wimpy barrier? Ha, the spirits say as they scramble into your home to wreak havoc! You need to layer your wards, don’t just use one method one time, there’s no such thing as too much warding.  What Are Some Ways That I Can Ward?: Now we’ll get right down to the methods you can use to ward yourself and your space! Remember that warding is important and needs to be effective, don’t try anything that you don’t have experience with for warding. At first, focus on the stuff you know. If you like sigils, use sigils at first and slowly work your way into using other more complex methods or methods that solely rely on your abilities. • Circle Casting:  You cast a circle by summoning the four elements to protect & energize what is in the circle.  - Here’s my post about circles & how to cast them  • Chanting/Speaking: Come up with a protective chant you can use to ward your space. This chant could be someone else’s or your own as long as you feel it’s effective. Speak it aloud and visualize a layer of energy protecting your space.  • Incense: Burn a protective incense in the space you’d like to ward and visualize a barrier protecting your space. • Athame:  Draw out the line of your ward with your athame, visualize the wall appearing, covering everything with a thick layer of energy.  • Spraying: Spray a mix of blessed/magickal waters and or herbs with protective properties in the space you want to ward.  • Sigils: Create a sigil using your favorite method with the intent to “ward” or “protect/protection.” Then charge and activate it as a layer of protection! Here’s my post on sigils if you’re interested in that: - Sigil Post • Jar Spells: You could mix up a jar spell for warding, set it in your house and forget it as a layer of warding.  - My protective jar spell post • Anointment: Anoint the doorways of your space, you could also anoint the ceiling, floor, walls, corners, honestly go for it.  • Salt: Sprinkle salt all around the edge of your home or space. Make sure to sprinkle salt on the INSIDE of your harm as salt can harm plants & wildlife if used outside. If you’d like to make a barrier on the outside of your home, you can use dried & crushed eggshells in place of salt. - Post on how to make eggshell powder here -  • Hag stones: Hag stones are stones with holes in them that have been corroded into the stone because of rushing water. It is believed rushing water is protective & cleansing so if you wear a stone that sat in it long enough to have parts corroded away, that the stone will maintain and keep those properties with it. It’s a great way to personally ward yourself, and an excuse to go out in nature.  They look like this! 

You will need: An incense cone/stick to burn (I used frankincense for protection and purification) Rose quartz chip (encourages self love and aids emotional healing) Lavender (healing) Peppermint (protection and healing) Rosemary Incense ashes Sea Salt

A white candle to seal the bottle

By Rainy-Day-Witchcraft

⌲ Beach Sand: Use for calming or anxiety spells to gradually wash away and smooth out fear/negativity, for spells of change, or in magick for motivation or strength

⌲ Desert Sand: Use for cursing to “dry out” your target of wealth/luck/happiness/etc, or add to a resilience spell for the capability to grow through hard times or situations

⌲ River Sand: Use for spells that are focused on moving on physically or mentally, or for change and/or healing magick - Can also serve as an elemental water offering

⌲ Volcanic Sand: Use for destructive spells or curses, in magick to reveal deeper or hidden meanings/feelings, or for banishing magick - Can also serve as an elemental fire offering

⌲ Heavy Mineral/Crystal Sand: (Sands with significant presence of Quartz, Garnet, Olivine, Hematite, etc.) Use in magick for personal growth, focus, or motivation. If you have a sand heavily composed of a specific gemstone (quartz, for example) usable as a substitute for that gemstone in spellwork.

⌲ Black Sand: Use for protection, banishing, or negativity-based spells