Saints Peter and Paul Chickory (Succory)/Čekanka Obecná Amulet in Czech and Other Central European Folklore
“Anyone who wanted to avoid this superstition [that in the five days after the feast day of St. John the Baptist, the rivers claimed a sacrifice] had to buy an amulet that ensured that nothing bad would ever happen to them. All they had to do on this day [the feast day of Saints Peter and Paul], at two o'clock in the afternoon, was dig up the well-known chicory plant and carry it with them.”
Petr je pokládán za pána počasí. Pavel hraje v tradici menší roli, ale je vzýván jako přímluvce za déšť a plodnost polí.
The source below states that you must use a stag horn not metal tools—a stag horn because the stag was a symbol of the sun god.
“In pre-Celtic times chicory was a highly revered sacred plant regarded as the plant embodiment of the vegetation goddess, the daughter of Mother Earth. The sun god, son of the high heavens, was her spouse. With her blue eyes, Chicory was constantly watching for her beloved and turning towards him. The Greeks held a similar view. For them chicory was the nymph Clytia, beloved of Apollo the radiant sun god, who languished and died when her love was unreturned.”
I had to use the magic of substitution and use Carolina Desert Chickory in place Cichorium intybus.
Carolina desert chicory is a native North American plant known for its bright yellow flowers, whereas common chicory is an Eurasian introduction featuring iconic, bright blue (and occasionally pink or white) blossoms.
They share nearly identical dandelion-like basal rosettes, feature milky sap, and have historically been used for similar medicinal remedies and roasted root coffee substitutes.
I stumbled upon the native plant while studying the Asteraceae family and looking for Getman chamomile for @venelestis (Instagram) plant kinship circle.
Chicory blossoms of both plants track the rising sun by opening very early in the morning and fully closing by afternoon to prevent moisture loss in high heat. Each individual flower head only opens for a single day. If n my photo below you can see the flower tightly shut roundabout 2 PM when I went to dig it up.
My small stag horn is in storage so I reused a hazel stick that I used on St. Stephen’s Day/Wren Day to carry my wren (king of the birds and associated with the sun) on our rotation around the house.
I’ll probably do another small amulet bag to hold the roots, as that has been an easy form of devotional embroidery for me with our life all topsy turvy.
Chicory | Dr. Hauschka
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The Complete Illustrated Encyclopedia of Magical Plants
Includes bibliographical references
The Golden Bough Volume 11
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