#righteouslight

The dew-drop carries in its eye Mountain and forest, sea and sky, With every change of weather;

-GASP- A BABY WITCH! SO CUTE! Eee, I love it when they still have that “new witchling” smell. Welcome aboard, poppet! ^_^

Okay, a forest, you say? First off, you are lucky as hell, because you have a really good resource for lots of wildcrafted plants practically on your doorstep. Second of all, before you got magicking it up, it would be wise to sit down and learn some practicals.

My advice to you is to pick up a field guide to your local plants and trees, something with plenty of color photographs. Petersen Field Guides are pretty good, but you should find something tailored to your particular area. Identify what flora is lurking in your vicinity before you go picking or plucking anything. (You may want to start with the trees, that’s usually easiest.)

Build your knowledge base first. Learn what grows in your area, what’s safe to touch and handle, and what you should avoid. Pay special attention if you have any allergies. Learn the associated uses of the plants you find and start getting an idea of what sort of magic you can do with them.

Once you’ve gotten a decent idea of what you have to work with, you can try picking SMALL (and I do mean SMALL) amounts of well-identified non-irritating plants to dry for your witchy purposes. You can also look for fallen sticks that might make good wands, and if you live near a stream, you can look for hag stones (river rocks with holes worn through them).

If you’d like more information on plant-based magic, you can check out my website, Grovedaughter Witchery. There are two downloadable spreadsheets on the magical uses of various plants and trees, as well as a page of recommended reading and some online resources for supplies and further information. Being that you’re new to witching, I suggest reading the Practical Magic Series and the Tips & Tricks section as well, especially the Advice for Beginners.