#may apple

American mandrake (Podophyllum peltatum), also known as mayapple, is a native plant of North America. Despite its name, it is not related to the European Mandrake (Mandragora officinarum), which is famous for its magickal and folkloric associations. However, the mayapple has its own history of use in indigenous medicine and herbalism. The plant is toxic in most parts, except for its ripe fruit, which is edible in small amounts.

It has been traditionally used for purgative, antiviral, and wart-removal purposes. Its active compound, podophyllotoxin, is highly potent and used in modern medicine. While it lacks the rich folkloric history of European mandrake, American mandrake still carries a powerful mystical energy, making it suitable for protection, cursing, transformation, and banishing magick.

Correspondences:

Element: Water

Planet: Saturn

Zodiac: Scorpio, Capricorn

Deities: Hekate, Persephone, Chthonic deities, spirits of nature and the underworld

Chakra: Solar Plexus, Third Eye

Gender: Masculine

Magickal Properties:

• Protection & Banishing - Used to ward off negative energies and spirits. Placing dried leaves or roots around the home or in a sachet can act as a protective barrier. Can be symbolically used in banishing rituals to sever toxic ties.

• Shadow Work & Transformation - Represents death and rebirth, making it useful for working through personal transformation. Aids in deep introspection and confronting fears. Useful in rituals for breaking negative cycles and embracing change.

• Hex-Breaking & Curse Removal - Historically linked to purification, it can be used in spellwork to remove spiritual blockages. Mayapple root (or a symbolic representation) can be included in spell jars for dispelling hexes.

• Spirit Communication & Underworld Work - As an underworld-associated plant, it is useful for honoring ancestors and connecting with spirits. Used in rituals invoking chthonic deities or seeking guidance from the dead (necromancy).

• Healing & Purification (Symbolic Use Only) - Traditionally used in folk medicine, but due to its toxicity, it should not be ingested. Can be placed on an altar to represent purification and renewal.

• Hexing & Cursing - Historically, baneful plants have been used in curses or malefic workings. Used in poppets, powders, or symbolic rituals to weaken an enemy’s resolve. If used in sympathetic magick, it may create obstacles or confusion for a target.

• Poisonous Energy in Witchcraft - Represents corruption, rot, and decay in spellwork. Can be used in spells to cause disruption, block progress, or instill doubt. Symbolic use in Dark Moon rituals for destruction before renewal.

• Illusion & Deception Magick - Mayapple has a dual nature—both healing and toxic—making it useful in glamours, deception, or misleading rituals. Used in spell jars or sigil magick to create confusion or misdirection.

Highly toxic: The root, unripe fruit, and leaves contain podophyllotoxin, which can be fatal if ingested or absorbed in large amounts. Use with caution in rituals. American mandrake is best used symbolically rather than physically handled.

Credit: http://www.spells8.com

In the past, mandrake was often made into amulets which were believed to bring good fortune, cure sterility, etc. In one superstition, people who pull up this root will be condemned to hell, and the mandrake root would scream and cry as it was pulled from the ground, killing anyone who heard it.

Mandrakes can be poisonous if you eat them. Although a mandrake isn't edible, it is sometimes used in folk medicine. The root of the mandrake has very slight hallucinogenic qualities, and if it's consumed in large quantities it can cause death or coma.

The fact that the roots resemble the human form and have narcotic properties is likely what led to the belief in the plant’s magical properties. The human shape of the mandrake root supposedly screams when pulled from the ground. Hearing that scream was believed to be fatal (not true, of course). Because of the risk, there were many rituals surrounding how to protect oneself when harvesting mandrake. One was to tie a dog to the plant and then run. The dog would follow, pulling out the root but the person, long gone, would not hear the scream. As described first in the Bible, mandrake was supposed to boost fertility, and one way to use it was to sleep with the root under a pillow. Mandrake roots were used as good luck charms, thought to bring power and success to those who held them. They were also thought to be a curse because of the supposed ability to kill with the root’s scream. Mandrake was thought to crop up under gallows, wherever the body fluids of condemned prisoners landed on the ground.

Read more at Gardening Know How: Mandrake History – Learn About Mandrake Plant Lore https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/flowers/mandrake/mandrake-history-plant-lore.htm

A Sagittarian/Ophiuchus correspondence is the MANDRAKE, also known as the MAY APPLE.

Wonderful.

Mayapple flower

Podophyllum peltatum