#devotional garden

[lady-seph]

i’ve harvested some of the beginning spring flowers in my devotional garden to Lady Persephone, and decided it’d be nice to share with you all :)

[sleepnowmychild]

My helpol offering garden (so far)

I'm still looking to get a proper tiered shelf for them all so I can add decorations, nice labels and some statuettes. But so far, all the plants have been doing well. Autmn-winter seeds are starting to sprout, and the spring-summer plants are looking a bit sad, but aren't dead and will come back when the seasons change.

So far I have:

For Hypnos: Lavander and poppy

For Aphrodite: Strawberries and pink hibiscus

For Apollo: Hyacinths, grape hyacinths yellow hibiscus

Currently unclaimed: Mint, Tuscan rosemary, snow peas, forget me nots, alyssum, avocado

For the cat I've been luring into my house: cat grass lol.

Plants I want to add: Grapes (Dionysus), mulberry (Dionysus), daffodils (aka Narcissius), some kind of vine (various wild/rustic gods), water lillies/lotus (aquatic gods), Jasmine (I just like Jasmine lol).

[verdantlyviolet]

Aphrodite’s Marjoram

It is often repeated that Aphrodite first planted Marjoram in her divine gardens on Mt Olympos. The plant was to represent joy, and in turn because of its association with Aphrodite the herb corresponds with marriage and happiness. It is also said to smell reminiscent of the goddess herself.

Marjoram is indigenous to Cypris, Turkey, and the Mediterranean, and was in fact known to the ancient Greeks and Romans as a symbol of happiness. It's botanical name, origanum, is perhaps derived from the words oros 'mountain' and ganos 'brightness', meaning 'brightness of the mountain’ or ‘mountain’s bright joy.’ [1]

Marjoram and Oregano are often mistaken and their names were used interchangeably in ancient texts - either as sampsuchum or amaracus, though there are some subtle differences between the use and description of the two. It is generally assumed that both refer to Sweet Marjoram in ancient texts. [2]

When discussing perfumes in his encyclopaedia Natural Histories XIII, Roman author and naturalist Pliny the Elder says, 'The best [marjoram for perfume oils] comes from Cyprus and Mytilene, where sampsuchum abounds in large quantities,' [3] which is why there is such a strong association of marjoram with Cypris and therefore Aphrodite. Marjoram was used often in sweet oils and perfume ointments, as well as it's more common culinary and medicinal uses.

[...] She went to Cyprus, to Paphos, where her precinct is and fragrant altar, and passed into her sweet-smelling temple. There she went in and put to the glittering doors, and there the Graces bathed her with heavenly oil such as blooms upon the bodies of the eternal gods —oil divinely sweet, which she had by her, filled with fragrance. And laughter-loving Aphrodite put on all her rich clothes, and when she had decked herself with gold, she left sweet-smelling Cyprus and went in haste towards Troy, swiftly travelling high up among the clouds. [...]

- Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite

The “divinely sweet oil” - ambrosial oil - would not be solely made from a common herb, but it would not be a stretch to assume that the sweet-smelling fragrance of Aphrodite’s temples and a component of the sweet oil would be the famed perfume herb of her homeland.

In Virgil’s Aeneid 657-694, Aphrodite (Venus) must put Ascanius to sleep so Eros (Cupid) can impersonate him:

But Venus pours gentle sleep over Ascanius’s limbs, and warming him in her breast, carries him, with divine power, to Idalia’s high groves, where soft marjoram smothers him in flowers, and the breath of its sweet shade.

We have to suppose that Virgil deliberately chose Cyprus because of its significance to Aphrodite, and therefore also deliberately named the marjoram on which Ascanius lay because of its significance.

Both Pliny the Elder and Dioscorides, a Greek physician 40-90AD, describe multiple gynaecological uses for marjoram. While Aphrodite is rarely associated with medicine, the link to gynaecology is an interesting nod to her. Referring back to marjoram supposedly carrying the divine scent of Aphrodite, the link to the sexual nature of the goddess becomes obvious, especially when considering the typical placement points for perfumes are also erogenous zones (neck, breast, inner arm and wrist, inner thigh, etc.)

🪴

Sources:

[1] Wikipedia

[2] Natural Histories Note 34 and Natural Histories Note 1

[3] Natural Histories Book XIII

Aeneid

Smell and the Ancient Senses by Mark Bradley

[chthonicdaughter]

Flowers and bones for my lady.

[barberwitch]

Mundane Monday Tuesday #37

Hoooo boy. February kicked my ass. Mercury in retrograde hit and I’m glad I’ve got my negation charm because I couldn’t picture what a train wreck this would be without it 😅 All I can do is throw myself into work and my craft, so...here you guys go.

(Picture: white pine plant press with leather straps and brass nails. Wood burned witch’s Proverb “Both Blessing And Bane May Grow On One Stalk” - Anon)

Playing around with the feasibility of making plant presses and green witch kits for the shop. So far, the rough draft is working well (all my tools I make are the rough drafts of stuff I make. I give and sell all the pretty stuff.)

(Picture: Antique wrought iron bed frame in backyard with 12 red planters filled with soil)

Spent Sunday making my garden bed...because witch puns. Planted my witch’s garden of onions, foxglove, tobacco, marigolds, datura, white sage, lemon balm, rosemary, poppies echinacea and moonflower (different than the datura).

All the planters are lined and drilled for drainage and to make sure none of the naughty nightshades mess with the edibles. Also planted a non edible between the edibles and the nightshades just as a precaution.

(Picture: approximately 15 sweet potatoes lying on the grass with dirt and a gardening trowel laying next to them. Various sizes and shapes, but there are several that almost 1 long and 5 inches across)

And lastly of my green witch gardening weekend, I had to pull up the sweet potato patch, and for size comparison, the trowel is 1 foot long...got some big boys ☺️

Now back to throwing myself into my craft. Tomorrow’s tip is...idk. I’ll figure it out or dive into the ask box to flesh out a meatier post...or I’ll reblog an appropriate older tip.

🦋Cheers, Barberwitch

[lady-seph]

Khaire, all!

It is that time again! My garden devoted to Persephone has begun to bloom, our first flower being…..*drumrolllllllllll*

Lily of the Valley!

I’ve also had some mint pop up, yarrow begin to sprout, and the rose bushes almost out of their dormant stage. We also have some bunny visitors who enjoy eating the strawberries before I can harvest them.

I feel this year will be good!

[verdantlyviolet]

All those eggs you’re cooking for Deipnon? Or using in cakes and baking offerings? Crush up the dried shells as best you can and scatter them around plants.

The fine shards can irritate and deter some pests (snails, slaters ...) and the calcium is good for the soil.

[verdantlyviolet]

Do you raise quails as an act of devotion?

Mm not really. I don’t raise them for one. I do have a breeding pair but I don’t incubate the eggs (and quails notoriously don’t brood).

But. While they are pets I do keep them specifically for eggs and for the compostable soil from their cage. I use the highly nutritious composted soil in my garden, and though gardening itself is not a strictly devotional activity in my practice, it is a way for me to feel closer to the theoi.