“ The Treadwell’s Book of Plant Magic is a marvel of a volume, sure to arm any witch—or anyone actually—with the knowledge they need to infuse their lives with plant enchantments of all sorts. This is the wise and wondrous herbal reference book we have been waiting for!” —Pam Grossman, author of Waking the Reflections on Women, Magic, and Power
In The Treadwell’s Book of Plant Magic , author Christina Oakley Harrington—founder of the renowned Treadwell’s Books in London— focuses exclusively on the magical powers attributed to the plants . She has sifted through hundreds of traditional sources to create a rare compendium of the “old ways” in which plants have been used to achieve love, win competitions, become invisible, gain good luck, achieve success, receive protection, and more.
The book also offers practical updates to the old uses, which the modern reader will find easy to carry out. The Problems and Solutions section suggests the appropriate plant or plants for almost any circumstance one could face in life. Each spell is carefully cited to its traditional source to aid the reader in further study.
What an absolute treasure of a magical herbal! I absolutely love that this text focuses solely on the magical folklore of the plants. It is incredibly well-researched and full of hundreds of references to established lore. As a USAmerican I am frankly quite jealous of just how specific many of the pieces of lore are to England — such rich traditions surround these magical plants, and certainly I am happy to have the opportunity to make use of this knowledge from across the Atlantic.
Christina Oakley Harrington offers such gentle and sage advice to her readers; the recommended uses for the herbs are fantastic, providing not only clear guidance but also room for the reader to develop the fine details of their workings on their own.
The book opens with an invaluable list of “Problems and Solutions.” Instead of having to know offhand what herbs to use for a given need, this section allows one to look up a problem (or goal) and find a list of herbs - all included in this herbal - to help with the issue at hand. For this alone the book is worth its weight in gold, but the detailed pages that follow are a wonder in their own right as well.
If you’re wondering if you possibly need yet another herbal - magical or otherwise - the answer is a resounding “yes!”
I wanted to know a bit about what kind of beliefs people have had (and continue to have) about different plants, which this book did tell me. It did what I wanted in that sense. Unfortunately the writing style did not agree with my much, especially as occasionally it changed tenses at random. For the most part, it focused on the present tense, but every so often it would use the past tense, implying that the ability being discussed was something that people used to believe, or that the plant used to possess. This was never explicit, so I was never sure if it was a mistake, or if I was meant to take it as not being up to date information.
incredible resource, with so much insight and care. christina has done the work gathering traditional spells and charms so readers don't have to! the 'problems and solutions' section helps you easily find what you need. this book helps to ensure old knowledge doesn't get forgotten and encourages readers to practice ethically by using plants local to them.
A great reference book with plenty of plants. Although it is written and based off of plants found around England, it is a perfect complementary book to anyone’s craft, with a rich history given it’s publisher.
Complete with alphabetical listings, a bibliography, and a small section for spells.
This is an approachable, well-researched, and rich little encyclopedia of magical plants. I will be purchasing a copy of this to refer to alongside my Cunningham and Culpeper.