The Witch’s Herbal Starter Kit
10 Plants That Have Protected, Poisoned, and Empowered Witches for Centuries
Not every witch wears black. Some wear wormwood and carry rue.
This is not a list of “gentle herbal allies.” These are the real ones — folk medicine plants, poisonous protectors, and ritual tools used in spells, curses, midwifery, and burial rites.
Whether you’re new to the path or already deep in your craft, these ten herbs are your starting point. They bite. They heal. They teach.
1. Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) — Dreamwalking & Spirit Protection
The dreamwalker. Moon-tied. Shadow herb.
Used across Europe, mugwort helps you see behind the veil. Burn it before sleep for lucid dreams. Tuck it in your pillow to call back the dead.
In Slavic Midsummer rituals, mugwort was braided and worn to protect against madness and wandering spirits. It’s been smoked, steeped, burned, and carried as a charm.
Mugwort doesn’t ask for permission. She opens doors.
2. Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) — Banishing & Spirit Work
Banishing. Bitter. Bold.
Wormwood is for endings. Burned at Balkan funerals to keep spirits from returning. Used in Western grimoires to expel entities and sever ties.
Think of wormwood as the herb of goodbye. Sharp, final, and unrepentant.
3. Artemisia annua (Sweet Wormwood) — Purification & Disease Magic
The purifier. Ghost chaser. Fever breaker.
Used in Chinese medicine for over 2,000 years. In modern folk witchcraft, it’s burned to cleanse sick rooms, chase off spirits, and break stagnant energies.
If you work with disease, death, or spirits, Artemisia annua belongs on your altar.
Dive deeper into understanding Wormwood a.k.a. Artemisia in Whitchcraft
4. Nettle (Urtica dioica) — Boundaries, Blood, and Protection
The stinger. The strengthener. The blood builder.
Nettle wakes you up. Stings, bleeds, protects. Boiled in Beltane rituals. Used in Scottish charms to drive away fae or madness.
Nettle teaches boundaries. She doesn’t ask — she tells.
5. Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) — Wounds, Divination, and Love
Healer of wounds. Keeper of thresholds. Love-dreamer.
Achilles used it in battle. Witches used it to dream and divine. Still hung above doorways today to protect against gossip and lightning.
Carry yarrow if you want truth. Burn it if you want vision. Drink it if you want dreams.
6. Rue (Ruta graveolens) — Curse-Breaking & Protection
Witch’s protection. The bitter grace. The curse-breaker.
Carried in Balkan, Greek, and Italian households. Hung by the door. Worn in red thread. Breaks obsession and psychic attacks.
Rue doesn’t ask what your problem is. She cuts it off at the root.
7. Vervain (Verbena officinalis) — Sacred Magic & Spell Activation
The crossroad herb. The sacred blood herb. The spell activator.
Collected under moonlight without iron. Used by Druids and witches to stop bleeding, open sight, and call spirits.
Vervain walks the line between sacred and profane.
8. Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) — Ancestor Work & Spirit Communication
The sun weed. The ancestor flower. The soul guide.
Roots for detox, flowers for grief, seeds for divination. The most underestimated plant in the garden — and one of the most powerful.
The weed you step on today might be the ghost who answers your call tomorrow.
9. Belladonna (Atropa belladonna) — Poison, Flight, and Shadow Work
Poison. Vision. Seduction. Death.
Highly toxic. Once used in flying ointments, absorbed through the skin for out-of-body journeys and necromantic visions.
She’s the dark mirror in the herb world. You don’t work with Belladonna unless she chooses you.
10. Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) — Grief, Memory, and Spirit Cleansing
The smoke of courage. The herb of the dead. The warmth of memory.
Burned in temples, steeped in mourning tea, poured into floor washes. In Balkan homes, thyme was a funeral herb and a rebirthing one.
Thyme clears grief. And when you’ve lost your way — it brings you back.
Closing the Circle
These ten herbs have been burned, buried, boiled, and feared.
They’re not decorations. They’re tools of power — and witnesses to old magic.
Start with the ones that call to you. Grow them if you can. Burn their leaves. Drink their roots. Speak their names.
And always — always — show respect.