wanderer

🌼 Fill your bong or bubbler up with charged moon water for a magical boost

🌼 Consider your pipe as an extension of your being & use it as a wand. Decorate it with crystals, feathers, embroideries or even enchant it.

🌼 Write down spells or a chant to say before you smoke to enlighten your high.

🌼 Save your stems & ash for black salts, rituals, potion bottle spells etc,.

🌼 Smoke before divination. For many people, it will calm you and help you tap into the spiritual realm.

Being a green witch basically means you want to incorporate plants and nature into your craft! Other names include: nature witch, plant witch, garden witch, forest witch, etc.! I’ll talk about some of the basics being a green witch could entail, but this certainly isn’t an all-encompassing list!

On gardens and growing plants:

Whether you have a flourishing garden filled with everything one could possibly think of, a little windowsill herb garden with the bare essentials or one potted succulent; there’s no denying the joy that comes from helping green things grow!

A container around 2-3 feet deep and filled with soil is perfect for growing potatoes! Plop ‘em in, water them occasionally and harvest in the fall.

Plant things for the butterflies and bees!

Sage, rosemary, basil, mint, thyme, oregano and cilantro are all helpful herbs that you might consider planting.

Daffodils, marigolds, roses, sunflowers and primroses are my favorite witchy flowers.

Eggshells and banana peels are your friends.

These food plants can easily be regrown.

#garden witch / #garden magic / #garden tips

On bringing the green in (houseplants):

Let’s be real, not of all of us have access to areas for planting gardens, or infinite space for indoor plants! It can make being a green witch a bit tricky. 

Spider plants, lucky bamboo, air plants, aloe vera (succulents) and cacti are all pretty easy houseplants.

Terrariums are adorable and you can make them into mini gardens!

Grow one plant for each area of your life (happiness, mental health, etc) [source]

You can get bulbs for grow lights that fit into normal lamps, just be sure to put the plants directly under it!

Watering plants with rainwater will make them happy!

#houseplant magic / #houseplant tips

On incorporating nature:

Find a place outside you can safely visit. Try to spend at least five or more minutes a day sitting and watching. Quiet your mind and just be. (This could be your front porch or backyard, it doesn’t have to be in the forest)

Wander on some nature trails. Visit the local body of water. Walk outside.

Start taking pictures of beautiful wild places, or wildlife.

Learn about what birds and animals live in your area, and perhaps what their tracks look like.

Climb a tree, go swimming in wild waters, take your shoes off and feel the ground beneath your feet, remove invasive plants and plant native ones, pay attention to weather patterns, collect rainwater, etc.

#nature witch / #nature magic / #connecting to nature

On wild plants:

Get some basic plant field guides. I really like Audubon and Peterson, along with Botany in a Day. 

There are also plant apps and websites. 

Learn what plants have poisonous look-alikes and how to tell the difference.

Get a calendar. Go out at least once a week and document what stages the different plants are in. For example: March 4th. Oso berry leaves almost open. Nettles small but fully established. Bitter cherry has unopened flower buds. Salmonberry leaves almost open. Also worth adding where (elevation/location) which is SUPER helpful for harvesting reference later.

Pick a plant a week and research/journal it. Points include: What it looks like, what look-alikes there are, ecosystem + elevation it grows in, medicinal uses, edible uses, magical uses, etc.

Harvest plants and use them for medicine and food after safely doing research*.

#plant magic / #plant witch / #wild plants

Helpful links:

Green witch tips

Garden witch guide

Plant witchcraft: A beginner’s guide to growing

Tip: When your plant is dying

Keeping plants alive when you leave for a trip

Researching herb safety

Anatomy of plants

USDA plants database (external site)

Wildflower identification tool (external site)

Collection of helpful plant websites (external site)

Butterfly plants list (external site)

Bee friendly plants (external site)

Crystals and houseplants

Garden blessing

Plant growth spell

Spell to heal a wilting plant

Desert plant correspondences

Dealing with plant spirits

How to communicate with plant spirits

The etiquette of herb gathering 

7 tips for foraging

A guide to foraging wild edibles (external site)

Guidelines for sustainable foraging (external site)

Sustainable and safe herb gathering practices (external site)

Songs for everyday:

No Roots // Alice Merton

Take Shelter // Years & Years

Gold Dust Woman // Fleetwood Mac

May it Be // Enya

Hunger of the Pine // alt-J

Altar // Sir Sly

Blinding // Florence and the Machine

Songs for Love Spells:

Angela // The Lumineers

40 Day Dream // Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros

Settle Down // Kimora

Can’t Help Falling in Love // Elvis Presley

Electric Love // BORNS

Siúil a Rún // Clannad

Songs for Cursing:

The Rake’s Song // The Decemberists

All Alone in an Empty House // Lost in the Trees

Come into my Head // Kimora

Power and Control // Marina and the Diamonds

Go Fuck Yourself // Two Feet

Songs for Glamour Spells:

Primadonna // Marina and the Diamonds

10,000 Emerald Pools // BORNS

Gold // Chet Faker

Blue Velvet // Lana Del Rey

Polish Girl // Neon Indian

Amber // 311

From MC Production, we bring to you Herbology Fridays! Let the lessons Commence!

——-

This lesson will be all about the anatomy of plants, namely flowers and herbs that will be used in the craft or for people who are studying medical uses of plants. As these lessons continue, I will be going over different herbs and their uses. But for now, let’s begin with the basics of herbology: Anatomy.

Learning the anatomy of a plant can greatly help any witch who likes to harvest their own plants for their craft! It can also be helpful to know in order to determine if a seller is actually selling you the right item/plant piece.

Let’s start with the end. The Root.

The Root:

The root is the portion of a plant that is typically found in the ground. There are different portions of the root. Here are some different types of roots and parts:

Fibrous: Composed of many spreading branches (EX. Barley Root)

Conical: Tapers from the Crown of the plant (EX Carrots)

Fusiform: Goes both up and down (EX Raddish)

Napiform: Swollen at the base, broader rather than longer (EX Turnip)

Fasciculated: Fibers or branches are thickened

Tuberiferous: Branches assume the shape of rounded knobs (EX Potato)

Palmate: When a knobbed root branches off

Aerial: emitted from the stem and into open air (EX Indian Corn)

Rhizome/Root Stock: prostrate stem on the surface (EX Blood-root, Calamus)

Tuber: Enlargement of subterranean branch (EX Artichoke, Potato)

Cormus: Fleshy subterranean of a round or oval figure (EX Indian Turnip)

Bulb: Abbreviated stem clothed with scales (EX Lilly)

And that's pretty much it as for the roots. Next, we shall travel to the stem.

The Stem:

The stem is the portion of a plant which grows in the opposite direction of the roots. Most plants will have a stem. Some plants will seem like they don’t have a stem, but it may just be short or hidden in the ground. Here are some plants that have different types of stems and parts:

Herbs: the stem does not become woody over time, but dies down after flowering

Shrubs: a woody plant near the ground; can range from 1ft to 6ft high

Trees: greater height than that of a shrub; stem unbranched from the ground. The stem of a tree is called a trunk.

Grass: too weak to stand up without support

Stolon: a form of a branch that curves towards the ground, where it may hit the root.

Sucker: rises out of the ground and forms a stem that soon becomes an independent plant

Runner: slender branch sent off from the base of the parent stem

Offset: similar to the runner, but shorter with a tuft of leaves at the end

Spine: short and imperfectly developed branch of a woody plant

Tendril: slender leafless branch capable of coiling

The Leaf:

The leaf is a flattened structure of a plant, typically bladelike, and is attached to a stem directly or via a stalk. Here are some different types leaves and parts:

Petiole:  the stalk that joins a leaf to a stem

Lamina:  a broad expanded blade attached to the plant stem by a stalklike petiole

Sessile:  attached directly to its base without a stalk or peduncle; fixed in one place; immobile.

Simple: blade consists of a single piece

Compound: blade is composed of two or three more with a branched petiole

Venation: the arrangement of veins in a leaf

Lanceolate: shaped like the head of a lance; of a narrow oval shape tapering to a point at each end; leaf

Ovate:  having an oval outline or ovoid shape, like an egg, leaf

Cuneiform:  wedge-shaped leaf

Cordate: heart-shaped leaf

Sagittate: shaped like an arrowhead; leaf

Peltate: shield-shaped; more or less circular, with the stalk attached at a point on the underside

Serrate: having a jagged edge; sawlike

Dentate: having a toothlike or serrated edge

Crenate: having a round-toothed or scalloped edge

Sinuate: having a wavy or sinuous margin; with alternate rounded notches and lobes

Pinnate: having leaflets arranged on either side of the stem, typically in pairs opposite each other.

Pectinate: having very close or narrow divisions(sections) like a comb

Lyrate: having or suggesting the shape of a lyre

Runcinate: pinnately cut with the lobes pointing downward

Palmate: having several lobes (typically 5–7) whose midribs all radiate from one point

Pedate: is a structure that resembles feet, or has a quality of feet

Obovate: ovate with the narrower end at the base

The Flower:

The flower is the seed-bearing part of a plant, consisting of reproductive organs inside the petals. Here are the parts of the flower, there are many forms and types of flowers therefore not going to be explained:

Leaves/Envelopes(perianth): a flattened structure of a higher plant, typically green and bladelike, that is attached to a stem

Calyx(sepals): a whorl that encloses the petals and forms a protective layer around a flower in bud.

Corolla(petals): the petals of a flower, forming a whorl within the sepals and enclosing the reproductive organs.

Stamens: the male fertilizing organ of a flower; consisting of a pollen-containing anther and a filament.

Filament: the slender part of a stamen that supports the anther

Anther: the part of a stamen that contains the pollen

Pollen: a fine powdery substance from the male part of a flower. Each grain contains a male gamete that can fertilize the female ovule

Summit: top, apex; especially: the highest point

Pistil: the female organs of a flower, comprising the stigma, style, and ovary

Ovary: the hollow base of the carpel of a flower, containing one or more ovules

Stigma: the part of a pistil that receives the pollen during pollination

Torus/Receptacle: an enlarged area at the apex of a stem that bears the organs of a flower or the florets of a flower head.

Monoecious: having both the male and female reproductive organs in the same individual; hermaphrodite

Dioecious: having the male and female reproductive organs in separate individuals.

Polygamous: bearing some flowers with stamens only, some with pistils only, and some with both, on the same or different plants.

The Fruit:

The fruit is typically the seed-bearing part of a plant. Here are some of the parts of the fruit:

Follicle: a dry fruit that is derived from a single carpel and opens on one side only to release its seeds

Legume/Pod: the long seedpod of a leguminous plant

Drupe: a fleshy fruit with thin skin and a central stone containing the seed

Achenium: any small, dry, indehiscent fruit, as the strawberry, with one seed which is attached to the ovary wall at only one point

Cremocarp: dry dehiscent fruit characteristic of plants that consists of two indehiscent one-seeded mericarps which split apart at maturity and remain pendent from the summit of the carpophore

Caryopsis: a dry one-seeded fruit in which the ovary wall is united with the seed coat

Nut: a fruit consisting of a hard or tough shell around an edible kernel

Samara: a winged nut or achene containing one seed

Berry: any fruit that has its seeds enclosed in a fleshy pulp

Pome: a fruit consisting of a fleshy enlarged receptacle and a tough central core containing the seeds

Pepo: fleshy, watery fruit with numerous seeds and a firm rind

Capsule: dry fruit that releases its seeds by bursting open when ripe

Silique: the long, narrow seedpod splitting open when mature

Cone: the cone of a pine, fir, or other conifers

The Seed:

a flowering or fruit-bearing plant’s unit of reproduction, capable of developing into another such plant.

And we (Finally) finished the anatomy of plants! I hope this helped a lot of you out in the long run of your herbalist life in herbology. Please join me when I go over the Medical terms that will probably be heard throughout the rest of my lessons following.

Sincerely,

The Sleepy Witch

*this lullaby does not replace the care needed for a plant, it is just an aid.

I see you weary

But don’t fret for long

I’ll sooth your roots

With some song

I see your life

Still holding on

And I will help

Don’t fret for long

You still have so much to hear

The breeze in the wind, my gentle song

As you heal, I will keep you near

I’m frustrated with people who want “their” cultural symbols handed to them on a silver platter. They want to “reclaim” things that were never anything except Nazi symbols, like the 12-spoked black sun or the symbol of a Nazi volunteer militia, yet they can’t be bothered to figure out what runes Vikings used. Nazis say “here are the symbols of our ancestral heritage (that are a bunch of crap we made up) and you all go “give it back!” When it comes to the runes they took 1,500 years of tradition and steamrolled it. It could never have been any other way. Nationalism is the enemy of culture. They cannot coexist in harmony. Nationalism is piss on the graves of our ancestors.

I keep seeing people say that they want to reclaim the runes, but you can’t reclaim something that was never yours. And if your conception of the runes is coterminous with Nazi use of them, then it is shallow, superficial, not worth saving, the death of tradition with a few half-rotten specimens preserved pinned under glass.

I know it’s hard when you don’t know who you can trust. We wouldn’t be in this situation without wolves in sheep’s clothing sneaking lies between a handful of facts to distract you (Thorsson/Flowers). We have a lot of work to do uprooting the deceit that lies at the core of modern heathen reception of the runes. Now’s a good time to start. Since the part of the problem that’s most active on everyone’s mind regards visual perception of symbols of Norse and Germanic culture this is gonna focus on that, with lots of pictures.

~ Get excited, kids, it’s runology time ~

Nazis didn’t take “runes,” they took an aesthetic more or less from the Gallehus horn.

This one particular object has runes that happen to appeal to their sense of aesthetics and as a result became “the” runes, and all of you people fell for it. They’re into straight lines because there were Nazi philologists who thought runes were the original writing system that the Mediterranean alphabets ripped off (echoing Johan Bure in the 16th century). The straight lines reminded of their origin in ancient rock carvings (rather than the truth, that their origin is in the (Semitic) Phoenician alphabet via something else like Latin, Greek, another Italic alphabet, or perhaps even with direct influence from a Semitic source). They were considered a symbolic mystical system first, that later achieved some utility as a writing system. The pristine geometric shapes reflect their archetypal mystical nature (specifically within the “Ariosophical” (racist) Armanen system of runes based on a “hexagonal crystal structure”). And I guess these blocky slabs are “manly” or something.

So yeah, it relates to an actual inscription but it’s just an aesthetic. I know this because I can do this:

These are Latin letters that “look like runes.” The only problem is, they don’t. They look like one inscription that reads “I, Hlewagastiʀ Holtijaʀ, am a huge fucking bigshot who drinks out of gold.” The non-runologist part of me is glad his shit got stolen and melted down.

Most of this goes for the other widely-visible variant – the same thing but with thin lines (like tawido at the end above). Those are somewhat better represented in the runic corpus but it’s not because that’s what runes “are,” it’s because it’s easier and not everyone is a professional. I’m still gonna attack the idea that these are in any way prototypical. In fact I believe that for most (but not all) rune-carvers rounded runes were the prototype, and when this wasn’t adhered to it was for stylistic or utilitarian reasons.

Runes that don’t follow this aesthetic – which is most actual runes – will not even be recognized as runes by most people.

The rest is long and full of images so I will save your dash but the punchline is that if you want to save the runes from Nazis the first step is knowing them – not as the Nazis conceived of them but as they exist in the wild, because then you realize that what was taken was nothing compared to what we rob ourselves of by falling for imposter “tradition.”

St. John’s Wort:

Side Effects: Insomnia, restlessness, anxiety, irritability, upset stomach, fatigue, dry mouth, dizziness, headache, skin rash, and diarrhea.

Drug Interactions: Antidepressants, allergy medications, cough medicines, immunosuppressants, HIV medication, birth control, sedatives, anticoagulants, and other drugs.

Ginseng:

Side Effects: Insomnia, menstrual problems, breast pain, increased heart rate, high or low blood pressure, headaches, loss of appetite, diarrhea, itching, skin rash, dizziness, mood changes, and vaginal bleeding.

Drug Interactions: Anticoagulants, antidepressants, anti-diabetic medications, aspirin, and morphine

Valerian:

Side Effects: Headaches, excitability, uneasiness, and insomnia.

Drug Interactions: Alcohol, anti-anxiety medications, and sedatives.

Lavender:

Side Effects: Constipation, headaches, skin irritation, and increased appetite.

Drug Interactions: Sedatives

Chamomile:

Side Effects: Drowsiness, nausea, vomiting, and thinning of the blood.

Drug Interactions: Alcohol, anti-anxiety medications, anticoagulants, anticonvulsants, antifungal drugs, birth control, insomnia medications, and sedatives.

Echinacea:

Side Effects: Nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, diarrhea, fever, sore throat, muscle or joint pain, dry mouth, headaches, dizziness, confusion, and insomnia.

Drug Interactions: Caffeine, immunosuppressants, and CYP’s

Aloe Vera:

Side Effects: Skin irritation, painful abdominal cramping, and diarrhea.

Drug Interactions: Laxatives, antidiabetes medications, anticoagulants, and diuretic medications.

Milk Thistle:

Side Effects: Nausea, diarrhea, indigestion, intestinal discomfort, bloating, pain, and loss of appetite.

Drug Interactions: CYP’s, cholesterol medications, and estrogen supplements.