Hawthorn (Crataegus oxyacantha / monogyna)
A hedgerow plant that grows well even in poor soil and high winds. It has white flowers in spring that are followed by dark red berries in the autumn. Watch out for the spiky thorns though! Associated with easing heart complaints I think it works well in love workings and spells to make the heart sing with happiness (awwwwww). Hawthorn is a tree of the Fae, forming the faery triad with oak and ash. The hawthorn offers a gateway to the world of faerie. The white flowers followed by the red berries have long been associated with fertility. May Day circlets are often made of hawthorn, adding more weight to its fertility properties. Dry hawthorn berries and thread onto black cotton and hang above your threshold or sprinkle the berries around the boundary to your home for protection. Add hawthorn berries to your floor wash to purify your house. Add it to workings where you require forgiveness. Use hawthorn in workings for protection, hope and warding against evil… yes another tree that protects against witches (sigh), although apparently witches would shapeshift into hawthorn trees to rest before flying through the night.
Hawthorn Magical Properties: Happiness, fertility, love, protection, purification, forgiveness, faeries, hope.
Ruling Planet: Mars, Venus
Sign: Sagittarius
Element: Fire
Gender: Masculine
Lily (Lilium spp)
Tall perennial flowering plants grown from bulbs (be careful as some of them can be poisonous). Lily is one of my favourite flowers, so beautiful and graceful, but be careful with the pollen because it stains. It is a very feminine flower associated with both the moon and Venus so works well for any Goddess work, especially the Goddess of witchcraft, Lilith. Use in protection, hexes and uncrossing spell work.
Lily Magical Properties: Goddess, witchcraft, hexes, uncrossing, protection.
Ruling Planet: Moon, Venus Sign: Scorpio
Element: Water
Gender: Feminine
Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis)
This is a pretty, quite small, but fragrant plant with broad green leaves and tiny white bell-shaped flowers. The shoots start to show in the spring followed by the flowers and then in early autumn they are followed by red berries. Add lily of the valley to incense or bath water to cleanse your energy and bring about happiness. Plant lily of the valley in your garden to bring happiness and success into your home and to provide protection. The flowers look like tiny cups so this plant is associated with the Fae. The flowers are said to ring and are used as ladders by the Fae. Use lily of the valley to attract faeries to your property. Folklore says that lily of the valley blooms on the grave of a person who was executed for a crime they are innocent of committing. Use lily of the valley in workings and incense to help with your divination skills and magical powers.
Lily of the Valley Magical Properties: Happiness, cleansing, success, faeries, divination, magic.
Ruling Planet: Mercury
Sign: Pisces
Element: Air
Gender: Masculine
From: A Kitchen Witches World of Magical Plants and Herbs by Rachel Patterson
Images from Unsplash