Discovering the Folklore of Plants

Discovering #74

by Margaret Baker

Cures, magic, divination and portents were all connected with the rich variety of available plant life, especially in verdant Britain.

Genres: Folklore, Nonfiction, Nature, Mythology, Witchcraft, Plants, Magic

168 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1969

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

1928-

Reviews

[Vanya Prodanova · Rating 2 out of 5]

Сладка малка книжка, ама не е за четене от корица до корица. По-скоро е за референции, когато търсиш информация за дадено растение. Доста сухо е поднесена информацията за отделните растения, което естествено я прави скучна, но поне е добро средство за сън. :)

[Pagan Hare aka Ellie McConnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book filled to the brim with folklore, much of which corresponds with witchcrafts own plant correspondences.

It looks at how various plants were used as reacently as the 1960s in areas where such lores still prevailed. It looks at jow plants were used in healing, finding your true love and protecting the home.

This is a must for any which whoes interested in such thingsand wishes to make good use of such valuable information

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a few books on plant mythology but most of the others have the plant specific information buried in long verbose accounts. I love that this book is more like an encyclopedia, where I can easily reference any specific plant. It's packed with information for such a small book, and fascinating to read.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

WHAT A WONDERFUL SILLY TINY

[AmyH · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid little book that knows what it is and does it succinctly, unlike the more meandering and diffuse Kew: A Witches Garden that I've also just finished reading.

We start with a brief introduction covering some more general points, such as the Doctrine of Signatures where a plant will treat an illness/body part it physically resembles, such as walnuts treating the brain. The majority of the book is an A to Z of plants and their uses, covering a wide range, from herbs to flower, trees and fruit/vegetables, supplemented with delicate line art. There's a reasonable spread of uses as well, including medicinal uses, being used for or against witchcraft, and associations of using particular plants. There are even attempts to extrapolate on if certain customs had older pagan roots which have been lost to unrecorded history.

Unfortunately there are very few dates to place when these beliefs were around, and very few sources for those looking to go back to the source material for further details. Also, whilst the information is interesting it does become a little repetitive. A lot plant uses crop up again and again, especially girls and women using them for divining the identify of their future husbands. This isn't necessarily Margaret Baker's fault as an author, if a lot of plantlore is about finding a husband then a lot of plantlore is about finding a husband, but it does make the book a bit of a slog in places to get through if you want to read it cover to cover which caused me to drop it down to a solid three stars.

Instead, it's probably better to use the book as more of a dictionary, looking up a specific plant you're interested in, which is probably how it was meant to be used. In that regard, it works very well.

[Jeff Harbrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great information and a fun read about plant folklore. The format is the only thing that let's it down in my opinion it's very much like a dictionary or encyclopaedia in its formatting which makes it a bit hard to just sit down and read, but it has solid info, is a great resource and is an excellent addition to the folklore library.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Illustrated with small, delicate woodcut botanicals, this carefully researched little volume lends itself to perusing a page or a flower at a time. Some of the beliefs described herein are astonishingly long lived, persisting to this day. Others have been verified by science. A great addition to the gardening, botanical, or anthropological reference shelf.

[Sharon Grimshaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fabulous little book of folklore and myth pertaining to many common (and some not so common) plants to be found in the British countryside. while not comprehensive, it is packed with information that can springboard an inquisitive mind into further investigation. Highly recommended.

[Linda]

A great addition to the gardening, botanical, or anthropological reference shelf.

[G. Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great little book, marvellous read!
Folklore and superstition about plants, including lore from Rome, Egypt, France, Italy, England, Germany and many others. Very enjoyable

[Steve Clark]

Edition: 3