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Plant Spot Light | | Plant Allies Come join our teachers in Nature as they show us their wisdom and love. | A totem is anything in nature we connect to for guidance and wisdom. We often connect to the fin, feather, and fur of our brother and sister creatures; but don't forget the stones, insects, and plants beneath our feet. Each person has a unique connection to their totem and how they work together. Totems will reflect how they adapt in Nature, so watch, read, and learn everything you can about this teacher. Let this monthly guide introduce you to new totems, or it may just give you a new look at an old friend. |
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Palm Tree Palm Tree The palm was the Tree of Life in many early Middle Eastern civilizations. It if often associated with victory. In early Christian times the palm leaves were used as funerary emblems, signifying both martyrdom and victory over death. In the middle ages, a palm leaf was a badge of pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Today, it is made into little crosses to commemorate Palm Sunday, when Jesus entered Jerusalem |
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Olive Tree Olive Tree This tree is also a universal sign of peace, but it also symbolizes knowledge, purification, fertility, longevity, abundance and victory. It can live for centuries, therefore it can symbolize long life. To the Jews, it means strength and beauty and was the emblem of the tribe of asher. In China it represents quiet persistence and grace and is the tree of the fall. Sometimes the Virgin Mary is shown with an olive branch rather than a lily. |
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| Spiritual Name | Devotion
Modest and fragrant, it gives itself without seeking for anything in return. | | Common Name | Tulsi, Holy Basil | | Botanical Name | Ocimum sanctum | General information
Tulsi is an important plant in Hindu tradition. It is considered holy, has long been used for its medicinal values and in the rites of worship. Worship and every sacrament from birth to death need the use of Tulsi leaves. No gift to a god or human beings is complete unless accompanied by a Tulsi leaf. Tulsi is the symbol of devotion. Tulsi is sacred to Vishnu, Rama and Krishna. There are legends in Holy Scriptures about it. The Padma Puran says that Tulsi was a gift the gods received from the celestial gardens of heaven. Another legend says that Tulsi was a woman in love with Vishnu. Lakshmi, in order to keep her away, turned her into Tulsi plant. Since Tulsi was a true devotee, Vishnu blessed her with a promise that no worship for him would be complete without Tulsi leaves. So in Sanskrit Tulsi is called Vishnupriya. The third legend talks of Tulsa's marriage with Krishna because she is the symbol of Rukmini or Lakshmi and her love for Krishna. The planter in which it is usually grown is called a Vrindavan after the name of the village where Krishna grew up as a child. It is believed that whenever Tulsi is planted in front of a home, the family residing in it is enriched in every way. It said that Tulsi purifies the air. Tulsi roots are a symbol of pilgrimages; its branches stand for divinity and its crown is the essence of all scriptures. Medicinal Value of Tulsi
Tulsi has anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties, and it is useful in treating respiratory tract infections like dry or wet cough, cold, and sore throat. There are several homemade remedies with Tulsi:
1. 30 to 100 leaves crushed and taken with fresh curd or honey regularly in morning removes constipation. 2. To relieve any kind of congestion in the chest, cold or cough a concoction is made of Tulsi leaves, ginger and black pepper. This can be taken with an equal quantity of lemon juice. 3. The juice of the leaves is used for ear-ache and tooth-ache. 4. Some experts claim it helps to cure indigestion, acidity, nausea, muscular pain, skin diseases, fever etc.
5. The plant is considered to be a repellent against mosquitoes and other insects. A devotion that keeps concentrated and silent in the depths of the heart but manifests in acts of service and obedience, is more powerful, more true, more divine, than any shouting and weeping devotion.
The Mother http://nextfuture.sriaurobindosociety.org.in/mar04/nf_home.htm |
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Aloe
Aloe
Homeopathic properties:
Internal use: inflammation of the stomach, gastritis and gastric ulcers; External use: cures wounds, ulcers, burns, stings of insects
Magical Properties:
Living plants guard against evil influences and prevent household accidents |
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Anise Anise
Homeopathic properties:
the seed promotes digestion, stimulates appetite, helps with cramps/nausea; relieves flatulence and colic, helps promote lactation, insomnia
Magical properties:
sleep on anise seeds to ensure sleep free from nightmares; fresh anise leaves protects the magic circle and ward off evil |
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Plant Spot Light The Celtic year has 13 lunar months, each one named after a tree. The first of these, November, is the birch. The silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) is the most common tree in much of Europe. It grows up to 100 feet high,and is often found in sandy soils. It is one of the first trees to grow back in an area after a mature forest is cut; this is probably a large part of its symbolic connection with new beginnings. Formerly covering the whole of the United Kingdom, it is a graceful and slender tree with a characteristic white bole. The birch represents new beginnings and opportunities. The name for the birch in the Tree Ogham, Beithe, has two meanings in Irish. It can mean "being," in the sense of the verb to be, and it is also a noun meaning "a being." Children's cradles were made of Birch, and the inner bark provides a pain reliever while the leaves can be used to treat arthritis. Axe handles were also made from Birch. On the Isle of Man, off the west coast of Scotland, criminals were 'birched' to purify them and to drive out evil influences. * * * BIRCH* (Betula spp.)  A lovely pale, fine-grained wood. Long associated with fertility and healing magic, birch twigs were used to bestow fertility on cattle and newlyweds, and children's cradles were made from its wood. Birch is one of the first trees to grow on bare soil and thus it births the entire forest. Criminals were at one time birched to drive out evil influences on them, to renew them for the new year. Birch was associated with Thor, probably in recognition of his role as an agricultural and fertility deity. Birch is an incredibly useful tree - nearly every part of it is edible, and it's sap was an important source of sugar to Native Americans and early settlers. The inner bark provides a pain reliever and the leaves are used to treat arthritis. It's bark was used for everything from paper to canoe hulls, and axe handles were also made from Birch. Birch is most useful for fertility and healing spells |
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Bayberry Bayberry Symbolizes illusions and appearances, it is used for visions and divining. Plant BayBerry for a aromatherapy garden |
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Plant Spot Light Bamboo Bamboo Bamboo is an extremely versatile plant and has many uses, it represents growth and versatility. The Bamboo plant has been revered for many centuries. With over 1,000 varieties, countries such as Asia, Australia, South America, and North America have become home to the Bamboo plant. Technically, Bamboo is a grass and it is highly desirable due to its fast growth. Many believe that it is because of this quality that the Bamboo plant has come to signify many things to different people. In fact, various countries feature the Bamboo plant in their creation stories and some of the tales are very similar. In the Andaman Islands, a group of islands in the Bay of Bengal, it is believed that the first people emerged from the stem of a Bamboo plant. The Philippines also have a similar creation tale to tell. The Philippine story tells of the first man and woman emerging from a Bamboo stem. In Malaysia, the story is the same. The tale is of a man who fell asleep under the shade of a Bamboo tree. While he slept, he dreamt of a beautiful woman. When he awoke, he opened the Bamboo tree and found the woman inside. Along with the creation stories, Bamboo has become popular with many cultures as a good luck plant. China often associates Bamboo with luck and wealth. This may be directly related to the plant’s quick growth and longevity. Additionally, the Bamboo plant has become the traditional symbol for friendship in India. Also, Bamboo is often associated with prosperity, peace, good fortune, success, and protection from evil. Though Bamboo may not be the source of all human life, it has become a well-favored plant by numerous people. It is great for outdoor landscaping or adorning a home while grown in containers. Whether it is due to its fast growth, longevity, or association with mythology and good fortune, Bamboo is not just a beautiful plant, but it has many uses as well. The shoots from the Bamboo plant are edible, and are a very popular staple in Asian cuisine. However, it should be noted that not all Bamboo plants are edible so use caution when growing Bamboo for food purposes. Artists have used bamboo for many years, and Bamboo has been industrialized for items such as fences, furniture, and floors. From chopsticks, to toys, and even knitting needles, Bamboo has found its place as a strong and enduring wood suitable for use by craftsmen. The Bamboo plant plays a vital role in Feng Shui. You can get lucky with a Bamboo plant grown either indoors or outdoors. You can also grow the Feng Shui specialty, “Lucky Bamboo�?simply in your home or office. Though technically, Lucky Bamboo is a lily, it is the Bamboo lovers favorite plant of choice. With its beautiful jade stalks, the Lucky Bamboo plant thrives in ½ an inch of water, low light, and a diluted mix of fertilizer. More on Bamboo plant food. The plant will grow and you can cut the stalks and replant them in other water/fertilizer mixes. Due to its simplicity and ease of caring for bamboo plants, many people recommend the Lucky Bamboo plant to adorn your home or office. Why not add a Lucky Bamboo or other Bamboo plant to your home or office today? |
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Plant Spot Light Beech Beech Because of its smooth grain it was often used for writing surfaces and has come to represent ancient knowledge through objects and writings. It is often used as a replacement for oak. | Beech - | Female, | Water, | Saturn. | Creativity, tolerance | BEECH (Fagus spp.) Beech wood is closely grained, very easy to work giving a smooth even surface. At one time Beech tablets were used as writing surfaces because of the above mentioned qualities. Beech and book have the same word origins. Beech is concerned with ancient knowledge as revealed in old objects, places and writings. Beech indicates guidance from the past to gain insight which protects and provides a solid base upon which all relies. * * * Fagus grandifolia A very formal and stately tree. Leaves emerge in late spring, changing from shimmering green to lustrous dark green to golden bronze in the fall. Smooth bark. Plant in well-drained, aerated soil. Can be used as a hedge. Grows to 50'-70' with a 40' spread. (Zones 4-9)  | Hardiness Zones: Zones 4 - 9
The American Beech can be expected to grow in the zones shown in color in the arborday.org zone map.
|  | Type of tree:
The American Beech falls into the following type(s): Ornamental Trees, Shade Trees |  | Mature Height:
The American Beech grows to be 50' - 70' feet in height. |  | Mature Spread:
The American Beech has a spread of about 40' at full maturity. |  | Growth Rate:
This tree grows at a slow to medium growth rate. | |  | Sun:
This beech does well in full sun.
|  | Soil:
The American Beech grows in acidic, loamy, moist, sandy, silty loam, well drained, clay soils.
| | Moisture:
Well drained. The tree is very drought sensitive. | | |  | Shape:
This beech has oval, pyramidal shape. | | Leaves:
The leaves from this tree are 3 to 6 inches long, alternately arranged and marked with parallel veins that lead to sharp, incurved teeth on the margins. Glossy green color changing to copper in autumn.
| | Flower Color:
Light brown and pale.
| | Bloom Time:
April-May.
| | Fruit Description:
The fruit is oval, 1/2 to 1 inch in diameter, hard, brown, attractive to wildlife.
| | Additional Information | | Attributes:
The American Beech tree is worth saving if it occurs on your property and one worth planting if you can meet its needs, including giving it plenty of space. Longevity compensates for its slow growth and a dense green canopy that changes to yellow-brown in autumn is reward for catering to its demanding nature. Throughout the eastern half of the United States, where this species occurs naturally, the four tiny nuts in each spiny bur are prized by a wide range of birds and mammals, including discerning humans. Description:
A very formal and stately tree. Leaves emerge in late spring, changing from shimmering green to lustrous dark green to golden bronze in the fall. Smooth bark. Plant in well-drained, aerated soil. Can be used as a hedge. Grows to 50'-70' with a 40' spread. (Zones 4-9) Wildlife Value:
Beechnuts are eaten by birds and mammals and are important food for chipmunks and squirrels. History/Lore/Use:
A sturdy, densely canopied tree, the American Beech was a sign of fertile soil to early settlers and was quickly removed so the plow could take over and farming for food could commence. In hilly locations, it was the home for migrating Passenger Pigeons who were so numerous that they broke off the limbs of the trees from the sheer weight of their numbers when they perched on them. There was a Beech tree on the old stage road between Blountsville and Jonesboro, Tennessee that had an inscription carved into the trunk that read "D. Boone Cilled A Bar On Tree In Year 1760." The tree fell in 1916 and had a girth of 28-1/2 feet. The Forest Service estimated the tree's age to be 365 years, fully two centuries old before Daniel Boone inscribed it | |
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Plant Spot Light Blackberry Blackberry This was considered by all to be the food of the faeries and it was extremely taboo to eat them within celtic britain. BLACKBERRY LEAF ~ Healing, money attraction, protection. BLACKBERRY: (Rubus villosus) A Blackberry leaf decoction is a blood and skin tonic, and a poultice treats eczema. The juicy purple-black fruit are rich in fiber and Vitamin C. The root is a classic remedy for diarrhea and is reputed to clean the kidneys and urinary tract of stones and gravel. Simmer two teaspoons for the root per cup of water for twenty minutes, and take a quarter cup four times a day. The buds and leaves are used fresh in poultices for wounds, burns, mouth sores, and sore throats. Chew the leaves or make a poultice. The berries are slightly binding (as is blackberry wine) and are useful in diarrhea, as are the leaves.
Parts Used: Root, leaf, bud, and berry
Magical Uses: Sacred to Brighid, the leaves and berries are used to attract wealth or healing. This is a Goddess herb, belonging to the planetary spere of Venus. Protection, health, prosperity, pie for Lughnassadh, to commemorate the harvest.
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Plant Spot Light Bloodroot Bloodroot This herb is used to heal wounds and aid with regeneration. It symbolizes healing, strength and growth. Family: Papaveraceae (Poppy)
Other names: blood root, bloodwort, coon root, Indian paint, turmeric, paucon, red pucoon, red root, snakebite, king root, sweet slumber, tetterwort
Name meaning: The name bloodroot refers to the red juice found in this plant, which is somewhat blood-like in its color and consistency. The Latin name Sanguinaria means "bleeding", again refering to the red juice. Canadensis means "from Canada"; this name is applied to bloodroot because it is found in Canada, though of course its range includes much of the US as well.
Origin: Bloodroot is native to the eastern half of North America.
Range: Bloodroot is found from Quebec south to Florida and west to Texas and the Dakotas. It is also cultivated for its flowers many places outside its native range.
Habitat: rich, moist woods
Life cycle: Perennial
Description: Bloodroot is a small, herbaceous woodland plant that grows in colonies. The flowers, which bloom in early spring, have 8-10 long, narrow petals and a yellow center, and they open in sun and close up at night. The petals are so delicate that they usually fall within a few days of blooming. The leaves are round with large, shallow lobes and a heart-shaped base, and are usually paired with single flowers. The leaves uncurl and lay flat in the sun, and curl up around the flower stem when it's cloudy and at night. In late spring a long narrow seedpod develops, which is orange in color, and when it's ripe it splits open and many seeds spill out. The leaves begin to wilt in early summer. The entire plant contains a red-orange juice, especially the roots. Bloodroot usually only grows to 6 inches or so.
Similar plants: S. canadensis is the only species in the Sanguinaria genus. However, you may confuse bloodroot with twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla), which though unrelated, has similar flowers. Twinleaf can be distininguished by its leaves, which are divided into two large triangular lobes.
Uses Edible: None. This plant is poisonous (see warning below). Medicinal: The root has been used as an appetite stimulant, emetic, diuretic, purgative, expectorant, sedative, and emmenagogue, and for indigestion, asthma, bronchitis, croup, scrofula, and dysentary, and was once an ingredient in cough medicine. Native Americans used the root tea for rheumatism, asthma, bronchitis, laryngitis, fevers, sore throats, and lung ailments, and as an emetic. The root juice has been used externally for warts, eczema, ringworm, fungal infections, skin tumors, nose polyps, and ulcers. Experiments show that the main chemical, sanguinarine, has anti-cancer properties. Sanguinarine is used commercially, in products such as toothpaste and mouthwash due to its anti-plaque and anti-gingivitis properties. Utilitarian: The root juice makes an orange dye which was used by Native Americans and colonists alike, and was found to be high quality by commercial dyers. Native Americans also used it to make red body paint. The juice has also been used as an insect repellent. Magical: The root is carried to attract love or to protect against evil, and placed near doorways and windows to protect the home. Ponca men would cover their hand in bloodroot juice and shake hands with the woman they wished to marry, which ensured that she would agree to marry him. Some Natives used the root in divination. Red paint made from the root juice, usually made by mixing with animal fat, was used as body paint for ceremonies and war parties by many Native tribes. Interestingly, I've read that the reason Natives are called "red" is not because of skin tone but because of the red body paint they were often observed wearing in the early days of European exploration, so it may be that bloodroot is responsible for the notion of Native Americans as "the red man". Warning: POISONOUS�?/FONT>This plant is now known to be toxic, and its internal use is not recommended. The FDA has officially declared this plant unsafe for medicinal use. If taken internally, it can cause vomiting, vertigo, and dim eyesight, among other things. External use is probably also unsafe because the main chemical, sanguinarine, is known to be an escharotic, meaning that it kills tissue. External use should be avoided, or at the very least, the juice should be diluted.
Where to find bloodroot Because this plant is toxic, there aren't many safe uses, which is good since it's rather rare, and in some places endangered. However, it does make a rather lovely garden plant. If you want to grow bloodroot, please do not transplant it from the wild. You can buy it in many gardening stores, and the seeds are for sale online on many sites. It prefers partial shade and moist soil. If you do wish to use the root for some purpose, it should be gathered in the fall, and stored in a dry place. |
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Plant Spot Light Boneset Boneset It was used to help set broken bones as well as treat wounds. It symbolizes fixing, mending, regeneration and strengthening. * * * Eupatorium perfoliatum Folk Names: Agueweed, Crosswort, Feverwort, Indian Sage, Sweating Plant, Teasel, Thoroughwort, Wood Boneset Gender: Feminine Planet: Saturn Element: Water Deity: Power: Protection, Exorcism * * * Boneset Eupatorium perfoliatum Boneset probably got its name because of its ability to ease the severe muscle and joint pains of breakbone fever, a mosquito-borne viral disease also known as dengue fever. The stem of the plant grows through (perforates) the fused pairs of leaves, hence the species name �?/FONT> Eupatorium perfoliatum.�? Native Americans and pioneers both used a tea made of the aerial parts of the dried plant to treat colds and malaria. The pioneers of Indiana gathered large bundles and dried them for use through the winter. This herbal reduces fever by inducing sweating. Boneset was listed in the US Pharmacopoeia and US Dispensatory for decades as the standard treatment for influenza. Use of boneset in large doses may damage the liver and kidneys or lead to internal hemorrhage. America, Aerial parts |
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Plant Spot Light Bluebell Bluebell These are very enchanted plants it is believed that their bells call the faeries to their midnight processions. Everlasting Love Brings luck and truth. Delicacy and Humility |
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