• Monthly Columns

    Notes from the Apothecary

    Notes from the Apothecary: Snowberry   Snowberry, or Symphoricarpos, is the name for 15 or so shrubs that boast gorgeous white berries. The plant is part of the honeysuckle family, and is also known as waxberry or the beautifully evocative name, ghostberry.     The inspiration to write about this plant came from my 13-year-old, who sent me this cute WhatsApp message on his way home (pictured). It’s lovely to be the “go-to” person for plant info, and nice to be able to give some fast advice on a potentially toxic plant! The interesting thing about snowberries is that, while they can be toxic, they’re also used medicinally in some…

  • Monthly Columns

    Notes from The Apothecary

    Notes from the Apothecary: Petunias   Petunias: Both a beautiful garden flower and a star of the RNA-focused scientific community. Way back in the 1990s, scientists tried to create deep purple petunias by inserting the gene associated with this colour. Instead, the flowers just came out white! Further studies into this led to big discoveries concerning RNA interference and gene silencing, for which scientists Andrew Fire and Craig Mello received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. But it all started with the petunias. Petunia is not a single species, but a genus of flowers that contains around 35 distinct species. They’re all in the Solanaceae family, which also includes…

  • Monthly Columns

    Notes from the Apothecary

    Notes from the Apothecary: Anemones   Whenever you hear the word “anemone” you’ll either imagine a gorgeous yet shy sea creature or a beautiful flower found both in the wild and in gardens all over the world. Of course, here in the Apothecary, we’re excited about the flowers! There are well over a hundred species of anemone, including Anemone blanda and Anemone nemorosa, both often referred to as wood anemones or the more evocative name, windflowers. Anemones are in the same family as buttercups (Ranunculaceae) and grow from bulbs or rhizomes, usually coming back year after year. In Europe, anemones are keepers of living history, in a way, as large…

  • Reviews

    Book Review – Celtic Tree Mysteries by Steve Blamires

    Book Review Celtic Tree Mysteries By Steve Blamires Publisher: Crossed Crow Books 248 pages Publication Date: May 16, 2023         Author Steve Blamires gives readers a wealth of detailed information about the Tree Alphabet and Ogham script – how the two systems differ and how they may be used together for magical purposes. Celtic Tree Mysteries also serves a manual to connect and communicate with twenty magical trees, bringing about heightened spiritual awareness. The book begins with an academic overview of Ogham, an ancient alphabet comprised of a series of notches and short horizontal or diagonal lines spaced along the vertical edge of a stone found throughout…

  • Reviews

    Book Review – Celtic Tree Mysteries by Steve Blamires

    Book Review Celtic Tree Mysteries Written by Steve Blamires Publisher: Crossed Crow Books 250 Pages Release Date: May 16, 2023         A Llewellyn author, Steve Blamires has traveled to all the continents and is known as an authority in Celtic mythology and paganism. He has worked for National Geographic and he leads group tours to Scotland, hosts a radio show, and is on the Board of Directors of American Center for Folk Music. The Llewellyn site wrote this about him: “Steve Blamires was born in Ayr, Scotland, and is one of the foremost Celtic scholars in the world. He is a co-founder of The Company of Avalon,…

  • Reviews

    Book Review – The Cult of the Yew by Janis Fry

    Book Review The Cult of the Yew: Tree of Life, Mystery, and Magic Written by Janis Fry Publisher: Moon Books 480 Pages Release Date: April 1, 2023       It is not often a book summons you from the Forest of your Soul and takes you on a journey through time and out of time back into a richer, freer, and more integrated Forest of your Eternal Soul. Janis Fry’s The Cult of the Yew was that catalyst for me. The Yew trees first started whirling in my awareness after a random conversation in the Forest one day with a neighboring woman I met on the trail. She shared…

  • Reviews

    Book Review – Trees Are Our Letters: A Creative Appointment with Nature’s Communicators by Carol Day

    Book Review Trees Are Our Letters: A Creative Appointment with Nature’s Communicators by Carol Day Publisher: Moon Books / John Hunt Publishing Ltd. 136 Pages Release Date: March 1, 2023         Trees are our Letters. The book title tells us that there is a story to be told by trees. There are many testimonials at the beginning of the book that speak to the magical connection we have with trees. These testimonials speak to how this book can help to enhance our inner sight, spirituality, and healing. By connecting with nature and trees we can create within ourselves a sense of steady grounding and become more centered.…

  • Monthly Columns,  Spells & Rituals

    Notes from the Apothecary

    Notes from the Apothecary: The Beech Tree   The common beech, or Fagus sylvatica, is a majestically large deciduous tree, native to North America and Europe, and a vital part of the ecosystem thanks to being home and food to many forms of wildlife. There are other beech species, all in the Fagus genus, with some native to Asia, including Fagus japonica, the Japanese blue beech, and Fagus engleriana, the Engler or Chinese beech. In the U.K. where I live, we often see “Copper Beeches”, which have distinct, purple-bronze leaves and look like they’re straight out of a fantasy tale. Interestingly, this isn’t a different species, but a carefully cultivated…

  • Reviews

    Book Review – The Tree Horoscope: Discover Your Birth-Tree and Personal Destiny by Daniela Christine Huber

    Book Review The Tree Horoscope: Discover Your Birth-Tree and Personal Destiny by Daniela Christine Huber Published by Earthdancer, an Inner Traditions Imprint 144 pages Published October 19, 2021     This is quite simply a beautiful little book. Crispy written, easy to read, this book tells you everything you want to know about the Celtic system of tree horoscopes, tree symbolism, and where your destiny resides within this fascinating arrangement. Published in 2021 by Earthdancer, an Inner Traditions Imprint, The Tree Horoscope: Discover Your Birth Tree and Personal Destiny is written by Daniela Christine Huber. She also has pages on the Inner Traditions Imprint webpage, as well as Simon and…

  • Monthly Columns

    Notes from the Apothecary

    Notes from the Apothecary: Olives   The olive tree, Olea europaea, is an evergreen tree, bearing small fruits that we harvest for their oil – or simply to preserve and eat. Olives are native to many Mediterranean countries and the Middle East, which is why they are often linked to Greek and Roman deities in Western spirituality. The first time I saw olive trees in the wild, it was amazing. Here was my favourite snack, growing right by the side of the road! I saw them in Portugal, Spain, but none were so striking as in the olive groves of the Greek island of Rhodes. Rows upon rows of small,…