Everything in nature invites us
constantly to be what we are.
Gretel Ehrlich
Picture for a moment the image of the benevolent witch who lives in a flower-surrounded cottage. The witch’s gardens are a place where morning glories and moonflowers tumble over privacy fences. Roses climb over handmade arbors, and magickal herbs and flowers thrive together in sunny beds. Around back, tucked under old trees, the shade garden offers a quiet spot and relief from the summer heat.
Ah . . . a suburban Pagan myth. I have read that this image of the witch is outdated, over-romanticized, and unrealistic. Actually, it’s very real, and it’s all true. I’m taking a stand. Honestly, my knees are killing me. I am one of those witches who are supposedly a suburban myth. I am a garden witch.
A garden witch? Is this some new, unheard-of tradition? No. The lore of herbs and flowers is ancient, as is the practice of growing a magickal garden. Gardens have always been enchanting places. A garden witch just takes that theory and runs with it. Magickal gardening is an intimate approach to putting the nature back into your earth religion.
How do you know if you’re a garden witch? Well, the symptoms are fairly easy to diagnose. Do you experience a sensory rush at the sights and smells of a garden? Are you fascinated by plant lore and legend? Do you enjoy growing your own herbs and plants? To those of you who answered yes, and those of you future gardeners that yearn to try your hand at magickal gardening and herbalism, this will be right up your alley.
I’d like to invite you into the world of the garden witch—into my world. In this book you will find ideas, tips, and practical advice for both the magickal and the mundane gardener. There are garden witch spells and recipes, garden lore, seasonal crafts, and suggestions for simple sabbat celebrations that you can enjoy with your family.
Who am I to write on the subject of garden witchery? What are my qualifications? My name is Ellen Dugan. I live in Missouri with my husband and our three teenage children. I have many years of nursery and garden center experience, including contracting out occasionally as a landscape and garden designer. In the spring of 2000, I received Master Gardener status through the University of Missouri and my local county extension office.
I first began to seriously study folk magick in the late 1980s. I was initiated into Wicca standing under a full moon on Samhain/Halloween night. In the past, I have participated in an eclectic training group, and then organized and was a participant of a women’s open circle. Currently I am a member of a wonderful circle of adult Wiccans and their families.
Years ago, when I had first begun practicing as a solitary witch, I stumbled across a book that forever changed the way I looked at gardening. It was Scott Cunningham’s Magical Herbalism. In those early gardener days, I had just started to realize that most of my perennials were classified as herbs. Even more surprising to me was the fact that several of the magickal herbs listed in Cunningham’s book were perennials and herbs that I already had growing in my yard. Cool.
With my newfound knowledge in hand, I made a list of all my annuals, perennials, and herbs. Hey, I’m a Virgo—we are really good at lists. Then I cross-referenced them to Cunningham’s list, and what do you know? I had supplies!
All these great magickal ingredients, right at my fingertips. I was in garden witch heaven. And that is how it all began . . .
So, while your own gardening stories will be different, let’s both stroll down this garden path together. I can’t wait to show you how to add a little garden witchery into your life . . . from the ground up!