Flowers, Herbs, and the Faeries of May

Flowers, Herbs, And The Faeries Of May

By Edain McCoy, Llewellyn's 1995 Magical Almanac

From Beltaine to Midsummer, the faery kingdom celebrates the newborn spring. Throughout the centuries, Europeans made note of which vernal foliage was attractive to the wee folk and, by contrast, which plants would offer protection. Those plants marked with an asterisk (*) are poisonous and should be cultivated only with great caution, and should never be grown wherever children or pets are present.

• Bluebell --- If bluebells ring in your garden, an evil faery is near.
• Carnation --- The red ones draw faeries who enjoy healing animals.
• Clover --- Wildly attractive to faery life.
• Cowslip --- The best choice for attracting faeries to your yard.
• Dandelion --- Believed to be used by faeries to make beverages.
• Dill --- The fresh plant has a scent faeries dislike.
• Foxglove* --- A favorite of earth elementals.
• Hawthorne --- Sacred to faeries, as well as to May Queen.
• Heliotrope* --- Enjoyed by fire elementals.
• Gorse --- Repels virtually all faery life.
• Hollyhock* --- A faery favorite, particularly the pink variety.
• Lilac --- The gentle scent draws faery life.
• Lobelia* --- Will help attract winged faeries.
• Mistletoe* --- Can also attract unpleasant tree faeries.
• Morning Glory* --- Repels unwanted night faeries
• Mushrooms* --- Often used by faeries to mark the boundaries of their sacred circles or portals to their world.
• Pansy --- Known to attract parades of trooping faeries.
• Primrose --- Believed to give faeries their power of invisibility.
• Rosemary --- The fresh plant protects from baneful faeries.
• Sassafras --- Enjoyed by air elementals.
• Shamrock --- A form of clover Celtic faeries adore.