Herb and
Plant Magic
Herbs are one of the most important tools you can use for magic. For centuries, they have been used for their healing and magical properties. Today, our pharmaceutical medications are simply synthetic versions of what our ancestors used to use.
Like humans, plants connect to the four elements: air, water, earth, and fire. Without these elements, plants and humans could not possibly exist. We all need air to breathe, water to drink, earth to feed from, and fire for warmth and light. But at times we take our environment for granted. When was the last time you admired a wildflower in a field, or touched a mighty oak tree? This is something a lot of people don’t get to do every day, and as a consequence they lose touch with nature. Remember, one of the most prominent colors in the world is green. It signifies growth, which brings understanding, courage, prosperity, and healing.
All herbs and plants grow above ground. From the smallest shrub to the tallest tree, they feed sacred spiritual energies from the womb of Mother Earth. Once dried they can be used for incense when burned on a charcoal tablet. The charcoal is placed in the middle of your censer and once lit it gives out a dark smoke. After the initial smoke disperses, the charcoal tablet becomes red hot. This is when you can add your magical incense.
Always remember, when picking leaves from a plant to do magic, cook, or when cutting flowers to give to a loved one, never pull it totally from its roots. Always ask permission from Mother Earth when clipping and leave a token as a form of payment or thank-you, like a crystal or a new seed of any kind.
Herbs can also be used as amulets. Amulets are charms or ornaments used for protection or for an intent. They can be seen in jewelry or carried in little bags which I refer to in this chapter as “drawstring bags.” You can purchase these bags if you wish, or you can make your own with a piece of cotton material of the color specified for the particular spell you are doing and simply place the contents in the middle, make a bundle, and tie it at the top with some string. Following is a number of herbal amulets you can make to use at home or work, or for protection against the negativity that may seep into your everyday life.
Herbal Amulets
Money magic
In a green bowl mix one teaspoon each of powdered ginger, Irish moss, and sesame seeds. Crush together to form a powder, and as you crush it visualize your money needs.
Light a charcoal tablet and on top add a quarter teaspoon of your money powder. Concentrate, breathing slowly and steadily. Do this for ten minutes every night for seven nights, beginning on a Thursday night just after the sun goes down.
For money in your purse or wallet
If you find yourself without a cent, sprinkle dry sassafras in your purse or wallet and you will always have enough for the things you need to buy.
Prosperity spell
Sprinkle fresh alfalfa sprouts in the front and back of your house. As you do this, visualize your most wanted needs and recite the following: “May the ground take this offering I give. May it bring me prosperity which is in great need.” Do this seven times every Thursday, and don’t be shy—sprinkle plenty of alfalfa sprouts.
Female fertility spell
Find a bunch of fresh mistletoe and leave it indoors to dry until it becomes brittle. (Note: Mistletoe berries are poisonous; do not ingest.) Place the dry mistletoe inside a little orange drawstring bag. Carry it with you everywhere you go, and at night place it under your pillow. It will strengthen the female reproductive system.
Male fertility spell
If you want to enhance your fertility, eat lots of carrots, carrot seeds, and bananas in groups of threes. It will aid performance like never before, with sperm count levels way up.
To find love
Dry three apricot seeds. Make yourself a little pink drawstring bag and drop the seeds inside with three drops of ylang-ylang essential oil. Visualize positive thoughts of love in your life.
Love note
Write a note to the one you love on a Friday evening, then gently rub a bunch of lavender buds on the notepaper. Blow the buds to the wind and say, “May the fragrance of lavender carry my thoughts to the one I love.” When your love opens this note, nothing but your loving thoughts will matter.
To attract women
In a little cup add three drops of sandalwood oil, two drops of cedarwood oil, and one bay leaf. Mix together and let stand one night under a full moon. As you set the cup on the grass say, “Strength and magnetism this leaf shall have, no female will ever resist the male energy it has, attracted they will be to the male they see in me.” Carry the leaf every time you go out and you will attract lots of females.
To attract men
In a little red drawstring bag insert a teaspoon of dried catnip and hang it around your neck. Like a cat that goes crazy when it smells the “magical scent,” so, too, will men be attracted to your scent.
To enhance sexual drive in men
In a little red drawstring bag insert three acorns, the top of a green banana, and three shells of oysters you had consumed and dried in the sun for three hours. Keep this close to your lower extremities (like in your pants pockets) and you will see a change for the better in your sex life.
To enhance sexual drive in women
Get one dry typha leaf (better known as cattail) and while visualizing your sexual needs, place it in a little red drawstring bag. (Note: It is illegal to gather cattail in some areas.) Keep it with you at all times.
To attract friends
Make yourself a little pink or purple drawstring bag. Let the peels of one lemon dry for three days. Then put the peels in your little bag and add a teaspoon of passionflower petals and a bloodstone crystal that has been cleansed with lavender essential oil. Hold this little bag in your hands and visualize yourself in a place full of people, talking, laughing, and having fun. Keep this little bag with you when you need a friend around.
Protection for the house spell
With a red ribbon, tie a bunch of garlic to the corner by your front door. It will protect you and your loved ones from negative vibes that may enter your house. Never let anyone use the garlic for anything else.
Protection against intruders spell
Get a fresh, whole coconut, drain it, and cut it in half. In a bowl mix one teaspoon each of fresh rosemary and basil and half a cup of uncooked rice. Blend these together, then fill both halves of the coconut with the mixture. Fit the coconut together and wrap a white ribbon around it to keep it shut. Go outside on a Sunday night and bury it in the backyard. It will protect your home and backyard.
To rid negative forces from the home
At the front and back doors of your house hang two bunches of clover upside down. As you hang each bunch, feel the negative energy around you and direct it to each bunch. The clover will then set out to fight the negativity around your house.
Protection from evil spell
Make four little blue drawstring bags, each the same size. Mix in a bowl two teaspoons each of dry angelica, Solomon’s seal, and balm of Gilead buds. (Note: Fresh angelica closely resembles poisonous hemlock which can be fatal.) As you do this, visualize your house protected from evil. Divide the mix into four equal amounts and fill each bag with it. Hang or hide the bags in the four corners of your house.
Courage spell
Sprinkle a pinch each of dry yarrow and thyme in your shoes. (Note: Yarrow can cause dermatitis upon contact with skin.) While you wear them, your fears will stop and you will have the courage to accomplish what you have set out to do. It will encourage self-worth and make you feel ten feet tall.
Improve the mind spell
In a little yellow drawstring bag place three vanilla beans broken in half, a bunch of fresh rosemary, and the petals of a lily of the valley, and wear it around your neck. (Note: The leaves of lily of the valley can cause skin irritation.) With each breath visualize your mind becoming stronger, remembering dates you will not want to forget.
For a job interview
In a jar big enough to fit a hand’s full of crushed pecans, add three drops of rose oil, and keep a lucky hand (root of an orchid) inside with the lid shut tight. After three nights, place your lucky hand and the crushed pecans in a little red drawstring bag, and take it with you to job interviews. With this little bag you will feel confident while questions are being asked, and you will have a good chance of getting the job you want. Don’t let anyone else see the red drawstring bag.
For those who play to win
In a green bowl mix together one teaspoon each of poppy seeds, dry angelica, and dry chamomile. (Note: Fresh angelica closely resembles poisonous hemlock which can be fatal.) As you do this, visualize winning not only at cards, but at everything you do. Put the herbs in a little green drawstring bag and carry it with you at all times.
For sleeping problems
Make yourself a little purple drawstring bag, and as you do this think of having a good night’s sleep. Inside, add a teaspoon of dried valerian, and each night hold it in your hand while you lie in bed. Before you know it you will be soundly asleep, and when you awake, the little bag will be somewhere in your bed.
For spiritual awareness
and psychic strength
In a medium-sized jar half-filled with almond oil add a teaspoon of dry yerba santa, damiana, and spearmint leaves, with seven drops of lime essential oil. (Note: Spearmint oil is toxic and the leaves can cause dermatitis.) Mix together with a plastic spoon and screw the lid on top. This is to be used before spiritual healings or for divination purposes. Place three drops on your hands before you start, rub them gently together, and place on your forehead. Then bring your hands to the back of your neck, breathe deeply, and start your work. You may even like to use this blend in your bath.
For astral traveling
In a little purple drawstring bag place two teaspoons each of dry angelica and crushed peppermint leaves, and add a smoky quartz that has been cleansed with lavender essential oil. (Note: Fresh angelica closely resembles poisonous hemlock which can be fatal; also, peppermint oil is toxic and the leaves can cause dermatitis.) As you do this, visualize what you would like from the astral realm, and every night before you go to bed rub the drawstring bag on the bottom of your feet. This will take you where you want to go and protect you along the way.