Gathering Ourselves Together: Plant Allies to Support Connection Without Burnout

The season of Solstice - both Winter and Summer - can be a time of increased gatherings and social outings with friends and family. Some of these get-togethers are easier to attend than others. Almost all of these gatherings draw us out of our normal everyday lives into extensively social ones with all the feelings, expectations, and (hopefully!) joy that can come with them. For those with social anxiety or neurodiversities which make social gatherings challenging, as well as empaths and highly sensitive folks, there can be an extra layer sensory and energetic input to have to contend with. Through all of the ups and downs and in-betweens of social gatherings it's important to take care of yourself and allow yourself to be cared for (Reach out for support! Ask for help!) in ways that help you connect better with those you love. 

So before you head out to gather with others, here are a few herbs that help you gather yourself together first.

All of the plants I'm discussing below can also be used as flower essences if that is what you have on hand or are inspired to create your own. Each of these herbs can be blended with the other whether as a tea or tincture, herbal bath or oil. I have chosen plants that are easy to find at local co-ops or from herbalists, easy to grow if you have the time and space, and are all considered generally safe (with the minor exception that some folks with ragweed allergies are sensitive to Chamomile). 

image via @yoyoqua

Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla)

Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) is a gentle ally for all ages. If you're going to be eating and drinking together with others, Chamomile can be a great either before eating or after a meal as a tea or tincture. The herb is a gentle form of digestive bitters and while lively meals in different places and times than we are used to eating can be a joy, it can sometimes be a bit of a strain on the digestive tract. Chamomile also offers emotional support as a nervine (i.e. nervous system tonic) and is particularly useful for those folks who feel stress, anxiety, and general upset in their stomach. One of the key indicators for Chamomile is someone who is quick to anger and irritation when they find themselves in uncomfortable or stressful situations - if this is you, Chamomile might be a great ally to work with. It can also be a great herb to prepare as a milky tea for little ones in your life who struggle with the unexpected nature of new places. Learn more about Chamomile and all of it's healing qualities.

image via @phillip_larking

Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis)

Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) is a magickal plant. I mean, all plants are magickal, so Lemon Balm is not particularly unique in that sense, but it is one of those plants whose magick feels incredibly relevant to our modern struggles. A few years back I was really struggling with social situations of all sorts and feeling more and more like I would be permanently on the outside looking in. Walking under the Full Moon feeling decidedly un-enchanted but casting spells in the ways that Witches do when they go walking while in great need, I felt drawn to a Lemon Balm plant growing on the side of the road in a tiny strip of garden (Goddess bless these slivers of tenaciously verdant refuges in urban spaces and those who care for them). Sitting with them, illuminated by moonlight, I found myself in the presence of a great harmonious hum. What I learned from Lemon Balm, plant of Bee Priestesses, was that there was a way to be in harmony with the collective without having to make myself into something I was not and without feeling over-run by social interactions. Were all my issues healed there on the spot as a hummed along with Lemon Balm under the Full Moon light? No, but they showed me a possibility that I didn't think possible for me, helping me remember that to harmonize takes a lot of different types of noises, lots of different types of people, but a harmony can exist between them all. 

Lemon Balm is a plant of life and joy, but it has this amazing power to help us feel in harmony with the world around us instead of constantly out of step. Perhaps this is the way the plant works on our nervous system, helping to bring about a state of homeostasis. Or maybe it is the way that Lemon Balm clears brain fog and helps us focus on what it is we want and need in our lives. What I've found over the many years of working with Lemon Balm is that they have a way of filtering out the noise so that we can connect with the hum. It can be social media noise, the noise of exhaustion and stress (it is a classic herb for postpartum for these reasons), the noise of self-doubt or whatever noise is isolating you these days. When it comes to social events and gatherings, these can be noisy events whether literally or emotionally, and Lemon Balm can be a beautiful ally to work with to help you feel connected to the situation at hand but not overwhelmed by it. I recommend taking Lemon Balm over an extended period of time for best results, but having the tea or tincture with you as you gather with others can be helpful for acute situations, too. Feeling inspired by Lemon Balm? Read more about them.

image by author

Calendula (Calendula officinalis)

Have you ever experienced Calendula (Calendula officinalis) herbal oil? For a lot of practitioners trained in western herbalism the making of Calendula oil is a nearly ubiquitous experience in the first year of training. This was certainly true for me and it's because if a practitioner of western herbalism is likely to use an herbal oil in their practice Calendula is probably going to be at the top of the list because it comes from an abundantly available, self-seeding plant and is just so heart-blossomingly lovely to use. What I love about Calendula oil, especially if you are using it in the winter months, is that it brings some summer courage and confidence to the physical and energetic body. Taking care not just of our physical body, but our energetic ones, is necessary when we're gathering with others, especially in situations that are less than ideal. Calendula sings "I know who I am and I love it!" and helps us feel the same especially when we are met with dismissal or cruelty at our self-expression and truth-living (hello especially to my beautiful alphabet soup and trans and nonconforming queerdos whose families of origins haven't been able to see you yet). Of course, you can use Calendula in tea or tincture form, and it is wonderful in baths and as a hydrosol, but I think there is a brave sort of magick that emerges from blessing your physical form with the oil of this bright blossom before entering into the fray of social situations. If you're resonating with what I've written so far about Calendula be sure to read more about them.

image source

Milky Oat (Avena sativa)

I love Milky Oat (Avena sativa) and Milky Oat loves you. A powerful and nourishing nervous system tonic, Milky Oat is a beloved plant ally of mine. While you can read my whole profile on them, what I want to focus on for this post is the way that Milky Oat helps us to healing parental energies. There are a few herbs which seem to help us humans connect with a spirit of a kind and generous parent, like Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca) and Pine (Pinus sylvestris), and I find Milky Oat to fit well into this category. When kids grow up not getting the appropriate levels of emotional security and attachment from the parental figures in their life this often leads to a dysregulation of the nervous system (and often intense burnout around the first Saturn Return, i.e. when folks are about to enter into their third decade of life). Milky Oat can help to repair the nervous system and teach it how to find homeostasis all while making space for folks to re-parent their inner child even while they are interacting with and sometimes still parenting their own parents.

They’re a great plant ally as adjunct support before and after therapy sessions as well as if you're spending any time at home during the winter or even if you're sticking away from family but the holidays bring up a lot of feelings. What I love about working with plants when it comes to our big and complicated feelings is that we don't have to worry about wearing out our welcome with them. You could spend hours in a field of Milky Oat telling them your problems and they will continue to dance and sway with gentle encouragement. But what's even more magickal about herbs and how they help us experience our feelings is that they help guide us to the people and places we need to meet in order to feel more whole and better supported. If what I've written about Milky Oat resonates with you, be sure to check out the full profile I've written and especially the section on the Milky Oat personality.

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If you're looking for more support of the divinatory persuasion, here's a spread to help clarify the dynamic of any kind of relationship and here's one to help you connect with your future self (because getting together with family can sometimes make us feel like we're stuck in the past). If creating lists and systems is the way that you cope with the added stress of the holidays, how about putting together a winter apothecary? Or a deep dive into the energetics of traditional western herbalism?

Another practice that I find essential for navigating social spaces is breathwork so I've shared my favorite simple breathwork meditation to help you ground and center. Because while we don’t always have access to plant medicine we always have access to our breath.

Wherever the season finds you, may you find lots of rest and plenty of peace.

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Make Your Own Flower Essences

One of my favorite healing modalities to use in my practice are flower essences. They are a vibrational form of energy medicine that works primarily on the emotional body. Flower Essences do not contain any plant material and are not herbal extracts (i.e. herbal tinctures or glycerites that are a potent form of herbal medicine) but instead help us to connect with the energetic quality of a flowering plant. There is no plant or stone material within the essences, only the energetic imprint. If you choose an essence that is not meant for you, it will not affect you. However, if you choose an essence that does fit your needs, it can be transformative.

Various forms of flower essences have been around for a long time, but the modern tradition of Flower Essences in western herbalism emerged in the 1930s through the work of English physician Dr. Edward Bach. He wanted to create a form of healing medicine that was inherently harmless and very easy to understand and use. Dr. Bach recognized that much of disease was caused by stress generated from emotional distress and that there was a healing that occurred when a client could recognize themselves in the remedy being offered (as opposed to feeling lost in unnecessarily medicalized jargon that created a schism between the body and its feelings). Some of you may have already heard of Rescue Remedy which is Bach's most well-known Flower Essence and helps to support a person's recovery from shock and trauma. Bach created 38 essences in total and many other folks have followed in his footsteps leading to the modern renaissance of essence making

Flower essences are fun and easy to make, using inexpensive ingredients, and the process encourages you to slow down and connect directly with plant spirits. For the modern tradition started by Dr. Edward Bach there are two primary methods (the sun and boiling methods), but nowadays you'll see a wide range of methods in use by folks who are continuing to experiment and play with the practice. I have described the way that I was taught to make essences which (as far as I've been able to parse out from the lineages of the teachers who taught me including Dori Midnight, Deb Soule, and the written works of Edward Bach) combines Bach, Flower Essence Society, and queer feminist witchfolk methods.

While I completely encourage you to get out there and start making essences on your own, if you do have the chance to sit in community and in communion with a teacher and classmates, it's an incredible experience. 

The process of making essences is simple - it is primarily a meditative act of paying attention to the plant spirits, the environment, and slowing down enough to listen with your whole self. I've listed out my process below and at the end included notes on flower essences and standard dosage. I hope you feel inspired to create your own essence after reading this tutorial and participate in the beautiful culture and community of flower essence collaborators (because it really is a collaboration between person and plant).

How To Make Flower Essences

Gather together supplies. For flower essence making you'll need:

• A clear glass bowl or jar

• A pair of wooden tongs or fine mesh strainer

• Spring water

• A funnel is useful

• Coffee filter

• A clean (preferably new) bottle to store your essence

• Preservative of choice

For my essence making bowl, I use an old, thick glass jar that used to house a candle - it is a tool in my practice that is used exclusively for essence making. If wooden tongs are difficult because of issues with dexterity, you can use a fine mesh strainer to scoop out the plant material. The uses for these tools will be explained in the essence making process below.

Begin with the breath. Before I even choose an essence to make and when to make it, I allow myself to come into a meditative state. The physical act of making flower essences is simple, the complexity of this form of remedy-making comes from the focus and intention of the practitioner in communion with plant spirits. For me, it means that I begin the process of making flower essences by returning to my breath and checking in to see if I'm in a place energetically and emotionally to be making essences. If the path feels clear, I proceed with the next step. And if it doesn't? I pause, I wait, I come back to the work another day, and that's ok. 

Choose the flowers to make an essence with. Like much of herbal medicine making, making essences is a seasonal craft and asks us to be aware of and sensitive to the growing world around us. Knowing when it is time and with what plant to make essences with is a bit practical (the Roses will be blooming in May) and a bit intuitive (ah, I hear Rose song - it's time to make an essence). I'll get an idea for making an essence, but sometimes the message I receive back when sitting with the plants is that I need to wait. The timing of making essences isn't about what works for my schedule but being in partnership with the plant spirits. I trust the process, knowing that'll all come together eventually, returning to my breath again and again so that I'll be ready to flow with the work when the moment arrives.

One note about choosing flowers to work with and researching them ahead of time. Personally, I prefer not to read up about what others have written about an essence before I make my own. Of course, I read about essences all the time so this isn't always possible, but instead of doing a deep dive into research like I would do for an herbal remedy I'm making, I instead strive for a state of curiosity and open-mindedness to learn directly from the plant when making a new essence. After I make an essence and have written my own initial notes about it (more on that below), I love diving into the words of others about that plant. 

Pay attention to the weather. While I can prepare all I like, one of the conditions which is out of my control is the ideal weather conditions for essence making. Here is where you'll most often find variation in essence making practices, mostly with folks being a lot more lax about weather conditions than I was taught (which is completely fine!). I find the observation of and waiting for the ideal weather to be part of the mindfulness of connecting with the plant world and is an essential part of essence making. I make essences on cloudless, sunny days or at least those conditions for the time that I'm essence making so that no shadow will pass over the bowl of essence water during the process (more on this in a minute). On rare occasions I make lunar essences under the light of the Full Moon.

Approach the plant spirits. I always approach the plant from which I hope to make an essence with reverence. For me that is breath and song along with simple offerings of water. I state my intention and I ask to be able to pick their flowers, always waiting for a response before proceeding. How you approach the plant spirits will look different, but it's an important step in continuing to make the energetic connection with the plant you are making essences with. Once I've received permission from the plant spirit, I move on to making the essence.

Set up your bowl. Fill your bowl with spring water and place it in such a way that no shadow, including your own will pass over it. Once I place water in the bowl I begin to be very mindful of my movements so that my shadow does not pass over the water. I was taught that the water at this time easily absorbs energy, including the transfer of energy from my body through my shadow. On a more mundane note, it's a practice in mindfulness, especially in group essence making situations, to be aware of where you are in relation to the essence.

Add flowers to the bowl. Now it is time to add whole flowers to the bowl. Here is another place of differentiation that I see with other instructions I've seen for making flower essences. I was taught to use only a few flowers (and in my case either three, six or nine flowers total) in the bowl, whereas other practitioners will completely cover the surface of the water with flowers. Be guided by the plants on this and be mindful to not take more than you need. Aesthetically it can be beautiful to fill a bowl with flowers, and sometimes that is the path to take, but often energetically you only need a few flowers.

I use wooden tongs to add flowers to the bowl so that I don't touch the flowers with my skin and mingle my energies with theirs before placing them in the bowl of water. If you don't have wooden tongs you can use a leaf pinched between your fingers and the flower so that your skin is not touching the flower as you pick them. Again, this is a practice in slowness and mindfulness that I find to be so beautiful with flower essence making.

Some practitioners don't even pick flowers, especially if a flower is rare or there are too few of them, and hold the bowl of water up to the flower, letting the flower rest on the surface of the water for a period of time. Though I haven't tried this myself, I think that this could be a really beautiful approach to essence making.

Be still and connect. Once the flowers are in the bowl of water it's time to let the essence brew. I was taught to be in meditation with the plants during this time, listening for stories they might offer about the essence that was being brewed and the healing qualities that it possessed. Instead of a set time of energetic infusion, I was taught to be plant-led to know when it was time to strain the essence. I write down what comes through from the plants at this point so I don't forget what can seem so clear in the moment but hazy upon reflection later. 

Offer the flowers back to the earth. Once the essence is done brewing it is time to offer the flowers back to the earth. I do this by picking them out one by one from the water with my tongs and laying them at the base of the plant. I do not let my shadow pass over the water until all the flowers are removed at which point the brewing process is done. I like to arrange the spent flowers in a way that feels pleasing to the eye. An offering of beauty can be a powerful one when making flower essences and it can be a really beautiful process when making essences in community to have everyone participate in the creation of a spent flower altar.

Filter and preserve. I set up my coffee filter in my funnel and add the essence water to my bottle. I'll add in my preservative of choice at this point (typically organic vodka, but that's just because it was a preference of one of my teachers; many essences are made with brandy) at a ratio of 75% preservative to 25% water. You can use non-alcoholic preservatives (like glycerin or vinegar) but these are less shelf-stable and I've personally not had a lot of luck keeping essences not preserved with alcohol from going off. This bottle is known as the Mother bottle and will be the source for the Stock and Dosage bottles you use of the essence.

Offer gratitude and thanks. End your flower essence making session with gratitude and thanks to the plant spirits for their help. I add any leftover water from the essence making process back to the plant. At this point I'll ingest a few drops of the newly made essence - this is always a special moment and I find it to help ground and center me after this meditative medicine making process.

Flower Essence Dosage Guidelines

What you've just learned is how to make a Mother Bottle which is the essence that you'll make Stock bottles from. Here is where the connection to homeopathy shows up with modern essence making (Dr. Edward Bach was a physician and a homeopath), as dilution is considered potentizing to an essence and a necessary part of remedy.

Most essences who find in stores or being sold online, including the Bach Flower Essences and Flower Essence Society essences, and sold as "stock" bottles. You're meant to create a dosage bottle from these stock bottles which means that those small bottles have quite a long shelf life. A dosage bottle typically lasts for one month, but that can vary depending on need and use.

To create a stock bottle: Take a one-ounce glass dropper bottle and blend together water with a preservative of choice (i.e. vinegar, alcohol or glycerin). You want to add 50% water to 50% preservative. Into this bottle add 1 to 3 drops of essence from the Mother bottle. Now you've made a stock essence that you can create dosage bottles from.

To create a dosage bottle: Take a one-ounce glass dropper bottle and blend together water with a preservative of choice (i.e. vinegar, alcohol or glycerin). You're looking to create a rough ratio of 75% water to 25% preservative. You can also use only water and simply keep the bottle in the fridge. I like using spring water because that was the wisdom that was passed down to me, but any water will do. To this bottle you want to add 1 - 3 drops of essence from your stock bottle(s).

Standard dosage for flower essences is 1 - 3 drops directly under the tongue or in a small amount of water up to three times daily. What I recommend for your personal rescue remedy is to follow the standard dosage and take 1 - 3 drops during acute moments of stress. Taken this way, dosage bottles typically last for a month. I like to use an essence for at least one cycle of the Moon and then check-in with myself to see if I should continue using the essence, pause, make adjustments to a blend or move on to another essence. Reflecting on your journey with an essence or blend after a month's time is an important part of working with flower essences, so I highly recommend it.

A Few Magickal Variations for Making Essences

• You can make essences under the light of the Full Moon using the same methods described above. This can be especially potent with night-blossoming flowers and flowers with strong lunar associations.

• Use Moon-charged water for the base for an essence.

• Time your essence making to astrological events (i.e. during conjunctions, planetary hours, and so on).

• Build an altar or nature mandala for your essences to brew on.

• Make essences in crystal bowls (like a rose quartz or jade bowl), wood bowls, or with quartz crystal in the bowl. These will all interact with your essence in interesting ways.

• Charge your essence with sound while brewing. Songs, singing bowls, monochords, drums, flutes, guitars or whatever instrument you play can be used to create a soundscape for an essence to brew in and also as an offering to the plant spirits.

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Do you make flower essences? Or use them in your practice? Not all herbalists do though I feel like most western herbalists will have at least some exposure to them in their training. I always enjoy being in a room of plant folk who suddenly start pulling out the essence bottles they keep on their person (there’s always at least one and, ok, I’m often that one) and start to share the magickal story of how these flowers have brought them healing and inspiration.

And maybe that’s what I love most about flower essences - storytelling and the communion between people and plants are inherent in their making and taking. So here’s to the more magickal of remedies in our practices and the stories they bring.

May you find yourself in a field of flower stories and find some healing and comfort there.

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In All Our Brightness: Calendula Plant Profile

It feels appropriate that just before Beltane, the start of the summer season in the wheel of the year, I’m writing about a plant with a common name of Summer’s Bride. Calendula is a celebrated in traditional western herbalism as a reliable, inexpensive, and easy to grow plant ally.

For me, the magick of Calendula is in the way that the blossoms seem to chatter amongst each other, encouraging each other to shine brighter, to unfold just a bit further, to scatter seeds wider across the landscape. The plant has a community energy to it and to sit amongst a Calendula plant in bloom is to be privy to a steady energy of encouragement. “Who said you shouldn’t shine so bright?!” Calendula will ask you, shocked. “Better shine brighter then!”

I hope you find a bit of bright inspiration reading about Calendula!

image by author

Calendula
(Calendula officinalis)

Common + Folk Names : Pot marigold, ruggles, holigold, gowan, bull's eye, Mary bud, ringelblume, summer's bride, spousa solis

Element : Fire, Earth

Zodiac Signs : Sagittarius, Leo, Taurus

Planets : Sun, Venus

Moon Phase : Full Moon

Tarot Cards : Temperance (sacredness of balanced incarnation), Judgement (consciousness raising), Four of Wands (celebrations), the Sevens (healing of all wounds). Learn more about the intersections of herbalism and the tarot.

Parts used : Flower

Habitat : Native to Eurasia but found worldwide.

Growing conditions : Full sun and thrives in a variety of soil types. 

Collection : Collect the flowers as they bloom. Deadheading the plant will guarantee flowers for much of the growing season.

Flavor : Bitter, pungent

Temperature : Slightly Cool to Cold. Alternatively, the Greeks classified Calendula as Warm.

Moisture : Dry

Tissue State : Cold/Depression, Heat/Excitation

Constituents : Iodine, manganese, potassium, saponins, caretonoids, flavonoids, polysaccharides, mucilage, bitters, phytosterols, polysaccharides, resin.

Actions : Alterative, antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, antiviral, astringent, calmative, choleretic, demulcent, diaphoretic, emmenagogue, immunostimulant, probiotic, vulnerary.

Main Uses : I love Calendula. It's one of the first flowers to bloom on the land I live with and it's endlessly interesting in the variety of colors and shapes a single plant can produce. And Calendula will continue to flower for months if you continue to pick the blooms, being sure, of course, to leave plenty to go to seed so they can pop up again next year.

Calendula is prized as a healer of wounds and herbalist Thomas Bartram recommends its use after any and all surgical procedures. One way that Calendula assists in the healing of skin through promoting the formation of granulation tissues. In addition to its tissue repairing qualities, Calendula protects against infection through the stimulation of white blood cells, protects against E. coli and staph infections. The herb reduces fevers and can be included in herbal baths and teas for feverish children as well as adults. Herbalist and gardener Deb Soule recommends the herb as tincture for measles and chicken pox. It's a good herb to include in post-illness restorative blends especially if the illness was long or someone is recovering from a chronic condition. The plant brings restorative sunlight after a period of damp and unwanted darkness. 

image via @myriamzilles

Use Calendula in helping to clear congestion both from the lymph nodes and from the gut. As a cleansing herb and digestive aid, Calendula helps to eliminate worms and parasites while clearing out accumulations of toxins in the gut. An indication for Calendula is excess heat in the gut which causes gastritis and inflammation. Anne McIntyre points out that Calendula is helpful in reducing excess pitta and kapha from the body - while not a perfect comparison, in TWH we would say that excess heat and inflammation (pitta) combined with damp stagnation (kapha). Some of the signs of damp heat are swollen glands, congestion both digestive and in the upper respiratory system, a feeling of over-fullness, and thirst but not a strong impulse to drink. Another general indication for Calendula for damp heat is yellowishness to the skin, eyes, and in mucous.

Notice how your fingers are sticky after picking Calendula? That's from the plants' rich resin content which is why it is such a prized topical treatment for the skin. Topically the herb is used for wound care in a variety of forms including as an oil, compress, liniment, herbal wash, and hydrosol. It is a well-loved and effective vulnerary, helping skin and tissue to heal after wounding and bruising. Use as a gargle for gingivitis and mouth sores, in nasal washes for sinus infections and nosebleeds, as well as an eyewash for conjunctivitis as well as tired, irritated or scratched eyes. Useful as a compress for eye strain from staring at screens too long. Helpful in clearing up acne.

It is useful in treating varicose veins, leg ulcers and abscesses, ringworm, as well as aiding the skin after exposure to the elements including sun and wind burn and general air pollution. For animal and insect bites, it can be used topically and internally to help prevent infections. Those who are suffering from sore nipples because of nursing can find relief through Calendula compresses followed by application of the herbal oil. Include the herb in sitz baths for hemorrhoid relief and postpartum care. Use as a douche for vaginal infections.

Many herbalists I know, myself included, add the bright petals of Calendula, carefully preserved from spring and summer, into autumn and winter tea blends, The brightness of these petals bring a certain warmth and magick to the tea cup and help to enliven weary spirits who perhaps struggle with the darker half of the year.

One more note on the astrological correspondences of Calendula. You'll usually find Calendula categorized as a herb of Leo given its color and that it is an herb of the Sun, Leo's Guardian Planet. Or it is classified as a Sagittarian herb because of its deep connection with the skin. While there are certainly a number of ways that Calendula embodies Leonine and Sagittarian energies, I also use it as a Taurean and Venusian herb. As already discussed, within Traditional Western Herbalism it is primarily used for topical skin complaints (especially wound care), general inflammation, and as a digestive aid, all of which are associated with Venus' healing powers. The plant self-seeds, grows abundantly and is beautiful and cheering to see, qualities found amongst Taurean and Venusian plants. So I use Calendula for Leo to help balance their leonine energies and effectively direct solar power, as well as a Taurean plant and Venusian ally.

Magickal Uses : Calendula makes it appearances on altars from India to Mexico and is a beautiful plant of offering and devotion. Scott Cunningham recommends picking the flowers in the middle of the day under bright sunlight to create charms to strengthen and gladden the heart. St. Albertus Magnus has further recommendations for the gathering of Calendula including picking it in August when the Sun is in Leo while wearing a crown of Bay leaves and then adding a tooth of a wolf to what you've gathered to create a charm where only peaceful words will be spoken to and about you. These days just a Bay leaf with Calendula petals and perhaps the photo or drawing of a wolf would suffice in making a similar charm.

In more ways than one the plant is protective and garlands can be hung throughout the home to keep out unwanted energies and spirits. Use the plant in incense and infusions to help you find a thief and to locate your stolen goods. Add the petals to dream bundles to aid you in your night visions and psychic dreaming. Cunningham describes a curious tradition whereby if a girl walks barefoot on Calendula she'll be able to understand the language of birds - useful for witchfolk and those with avian familiars.

image via @yoksel

The Calendula Personality : Admittedly, it was a bit hard to try and succinctly sum up the Calendula personality. The plant and its accompanying spirit have a wide light cast with ease and abundance - it reminds me of Mustard Flower Essence but with more diffusion and broader application. It's a great essence for most folks and you really feel that when sitting amongst a wild spreading bush of Calendula blooms. As I continued to sit with Calendula one message that came through was that they were an essence that helped folks who have been told that they are a bit much - whether repeatedly since they were a child or situationally such as women frequently being dismissed as "a bit much" by male colleagues. Leonine energies of the essence can help support us in the work of confronting microaggressions brought on by misogyny, racism, homophobia, etc. Calendula helps us to take up space instead of bending ourselves into that were never big enough to hold us.

Calendula also offers lessons in learning to live with the abundance of self-expression for those who live with greater intensity than the general population. It helps folks to learn moderation when necessary but more importantly the essences helps folks to open back up to the warmth and light of close relationships after being shut-down by their peers for being "too much." Calendula helps us to make wise decisions on who we relate to through accepting the beauty of our intensity and sensitivity and finding others who are ready to do the same.

Contraindications : Generally regarded as safe, but avoid during pregnancy because of emmenagogue qualities.

Drug interactions : None known. Caution with sedatives and insulin/hypoglycaemic medications.

Dosage : Dry before tincture for a more potent extract. Standard dosage.

Bright Calendula is a plant that I carefully preserve for my winter apothecary and it’s been making an appearance in my winter solstice recipes for years and years. For other summer inspired magick, here’s my guide to weeds and witchcraft of the hottest season. Calendula is part of The Plant Ally Library where you can find all of my plant ally profiles from all of my courses in one easy to access and download space.

Calendula is a great herb for herbal baths and is an all around friendly and easy to grow herb to get to know. I hope you find yourself amongst their blooms one of these days.

This post was made possible through patron support.
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