 Fairies
and Flowers
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Bluebells * Said to attract faeries to dance in your garden.
On Beltane eve, make an ankle bracelet of "Bluebells"
and "jingle" bells to attract helpful fae folk to
you.
*
Clover * A sacred faery plant, clovers of all kinds will attract
them. Lay seven grains of wheat on a four-leafed clover to see
the Faery.
*
Elderberry * Used to make Faery wine, these berries can be burned
on a fire to invite the Good Folk to a gathering. Make a homemade
brew of Elderberry Wine and you are sure to have some thirsty
visitors. It is said that if a human drinks the wine, she will
be able to see the Faery. If a human should drink Elderberry wine
from the same goblet as a Faery being, he will be able to see
them forever after.
*
Elecampagne * Also known as Elfswort. This root can be scattered
around the home to attract the Sidhe. It can be added to any magick
or spell to invoke Faery blessing.
*
Foxglove * The source of the modern heart drug Digitalis, Foxglove
can have seriously dangerous results if taken internally. DO NOT
INGEST!! Instead, plant Foxglove near your front door to invite
the Faery in. Put a dried sprig of Foxglove in a talisman to keep
you surrounded in Faery light.
*
Heather * Heather is said to ignite faery passions and open portals
between their world and our own. Make an offering of Heather on
"Beltane" eve to attract good fae to your garden or
house.
*
Lilac * The sweet scent is said to draw Fae spirits to your garden.
Lilac and primroses for midsummer's eve, will please the Fae.
*
Mistletoe * The most sacred herb of the Druids. Mistletoe is a
magickal activator. In Faery spells, use a dash of Mistletoe taken
on Summer Solstice to empower your workings with Faery magick.
*
Milkweed * Both Monarch butterflies and fairies like milkweed.
If Milkweed is planted in a Witches garden, the fey will always
be in the area. The silky tassels of the Milkweed pods can be
added to a dream pillow to not only make it softer but also to
make you dream of fairies. In the Autumn when the pods are bursting
and the fluffy seeds are flying across the fields, a wish is granted
for each seed that can be caught and then released again.
*
Peony * Peony seeds were once used to protect children from faeries.
A garland of the seeds were placed around the child's neck to
keep them safe from kidnapping. In this day and age, with faery
contact so drastically diminished, I doubt that anyone would want
to don this faery banishing herb unless they were living smack
dab in the middle of a circle of crazed Fae!!
*
Poppies * Said to invoke the faery into your dreams Make a dream
pillow of fresh poppies to entice the fae to your dreams.
*
Primrose * When planted in a garden or hung dried on the front
door, primroses will attract the company of Faeries. If you have
them growing under your care, do not let them die! The Faery will
be deeply offended by your carelessness. Primroses are great in
container gardens. Tie a pink ribbon around your container of
Primroses while chanting; "Sacred roses, hear my cry for
your protection, this I tie"
*
Roses * Roses attract the Faery to a garden. Their sweet scent
will lure elemental spirits to take up residence close by. Roses
can be used in Faery love spells. When performing the spell, sprinkle
rose petals under your feet and dance softly upon them while asking
the Faery for their blessing on your magick. Roses are loved by
the fey so you can plant Roses in your garden to attract fairies.
Wild Roses are best for this purpose and you need to say the following
spell as you plant your baby Rose bush: "I ask a fairy from
the wild, To come and tend this wee rose-child. A babe of air
she thrives today, Root her soul in the Goddesses' good clay.
Fairies make this twig your bower, By your magic shall time see
her flower!"
*
Thyme * Wearing thyme will increase your ability to see the Sidhe.
Sprinkle it at the base of your door, and on window sills to invite
the Faery to enter your home!
| Fairy,
in folklore, one of a variety of supernatural beings endowed
with the powers of magic and enchantment. Belief in fairies
has existed from earliest times, and literatures all over
the world have tales of fairies and their relations with
humans.
Some
Christians have said that fairies were the ancestors of
the ancient pagan gods, who, having been replaced by newer
deities, were therefore hostile. Others thought that fairies
were nature deities, similar to the Greek nymphs. Still
others identified fairies with the souls of the dead, particularly
the unbaptized, or with fallen angels. Among their many
guises, fairies have been described as tiny, wizen-faced
old men, like the Irish leprechaun; as beautiful enchantresses
who wooed men to their deaths, like Morgan le Fay and the
Lorelei; and as hideous, man-eating giants, like the ogre.
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Fairies
were frequently supposed to reside in a kingdom of their
own—which might be underground, e.g., gnomes; in the
sea, e.g., mermaids; in an enchanted part of the forest;
or in some far land. Sometimes they were ruled by a king
or queen, as were the trolls in Ibsen's Peer Gynt and the
fairies in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Although
fairies were usually represented as mischievous, capricious,
and even demonic, they could also be loving and bountiful,
as the fairy godmother in Cinderella. Sometimes fairies
entered into love affairs with mortals, but usually such
liaisons involved some restriction or compact and frequently
ended in calamity, as did those of Melusine and Undine.
Various
peoples have emphasized particular kinds of fairies in their
folklore, such as the Arabic jinni, Scandinavian troll,
Germanic elf, and English pixie. Among the great adapters
of fairy lore into popular fairy tales were Charles Perrault,
the brothers Grimm, and Hans Christian Andersen. Other notable
contributors were Andrew Lang and James Stephens. |
Fairy
Tree Lore
ALDER
- The Alder is often associated with faeries who are said to like
to dance under the trees when they are flowering. Carrying Alder
twigs or flowers acts as a charm for communicating with the fey.
Alder
are also protected by water spirits.
APPLE
- Burn the bark as an offering to the Good Folk on Midsummer's
night. Also used in faery love spells. To ensure good harvests,
leave the last apple of your crop for the Apple-Tree-Man (a spirit
that lives in orchards).
ASH
- The Ash is often called The Unicorn Tree, because unicorns are
supposed to be fond of the tree. To catch a glimpse of a unicorn,
carry Ash wood or leaves. Placing Ash berries in a cradle prevents
the child from being traded for a changeling.
BIRCH
- "On a switch of birch was written the first Ogham inscription
in Ireland, namely seven B's, as a warning to Lug son of Ethliu,
to wit, 'Thy wife will be seven times carried away from you into
fairyland or elsewhere, unless birch be her overseer." -
Robert Graves, The White Goddess. If the spirit of the birch tree
(The One With the White Hand) touches a head it leaves a white
mark and the person turns insane. If it touches a heart, the person
will die.
BLACKTHORN
- Held sacred by fairies. The Luantishees are blackthorn fairies.
ELDER
- It was a British belief that placing a child in an elder-wood
cradle could cause it to be pinched black and blue by fairies.
Elder is said to offer protection to the faeries from negative
spirits. Elder Sometimes is a witch disguised as a tree. Burning
elder wood is dangerous since it invites the Devil. Wood spirits
are said to live in Elder trees and wood elves are said to come
to listen to music played by a flute made with Elderberry wood.
HAWTHORN
- also known as Witches' Tree, is one part of the sacred triad
of trees that are said to be sacred to the Faery. Oak, Ash, and
Thorn, when growing naturally together, create a place where it
is easy to see the Fey. Hawthorns were once believed to be the
transformed bodies of Witches, who had shapeshifted into tree
form. It is more likely that the spirit seen in the Hawthorn was
that of a dryad or tree faery.
OAK
- Legend tells us that "Faery folks are in the oaks".
Oak trees are believed to provide safe havens and homes for many
varieties of faery. In British folklore ancient, hollow trees
(called bull oak in England, bell oaks in Scotland and Ireland)
are trees that stood in old sacred groves. They were often believed
to be the home of spirits, elves, fairies or demons. You were
supposed to turn your coat or cloak inside-out to neutralize their
magic: "Turn your clokes For fairy folks Are in old oakes."
Oakmen are created when a felled oak stump sends up shoots. One
should never take food offered by them since it is poisonous.
ROWAN
- Rowan berries were often regarded as magickal and were the food
of the Tuatha De Danaan. If a rowan tree should take root in your
garden, then your home and all who dwell therein are blessed,
for the garden is under the special protection of the fairies.
Should you happen upon a flourishing rowan which is most bountifully
hung with cluster upon cluster of delicate red berries, then you
may be sure that some saintly soul lies buried close by. Rowan
protects against bad spirits. Used in butter churns so that the
butter would not be overlooked by Faeries. Bewitched horses may
be controlled by a rowan whip. Druids used rowan wood for fires
with which they called up spirits whom could be forced to answer
questions when rowan berries were spread over the flayed hides
of bulls.
WILLOW
- The wind in the willows is the whisperings of a fairy in the
ear of a poet. It is also said that the Willow tree can uproot
themselves and stalk travelers at night, muttering at them.
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