Sacred Plants of the Samhain Sabbat

Brass Bowl with Black Candle and Dried Feather Grass and Flowers on Black Table
Many plants are associated with Samhain. Serena Williamson / Getty Images

 In most modern Pagan traditions, plants and their folklore are an integral part of belief and practice. In particular, many of the Sabbats are associated with the magical properties of different plants. Samhain falls on October 31 in the northern hemisphere, and six months earlier if you live below the equator. Let’s take a look at Samhain, the witches' new year, and seven plants that often correspond with the season.

01
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Rosemary

Bunch of rosemary sprigs
Rosemary is associated with remembrance. James A. Guilliam / Getty Images

Rosemary is associated with remembrance, and during the Samhain season, many of us are taking the time to honor the memories of our ancestors and other lost loved ones. Use rosemary on an ancestor altar, or blend it into incense for use in your Samhain rituals.

Roman priests used rosemary as incense in religious ceremonies, and many cultures considered it a herb to use as protection from evil spirits and witches. In England, it was burned in the homes of those who had died from illness, and placed on coffins before the grave was filled with dirt.

For magical use, burn rosemary to rid a home of negative energy, or as an incense while you meditate. Hang bundles on your front door to keep harmful people, like burglars, from entering. Stuff a healing poppet with dried rosemary to take advantage of its medicinal properties, or mix with juniper berries and burn in a sickroom to promote healthy recovery. In spellwork, rosemary can be used as a substitute for other herbs such as frankincense. 

02
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Fall Flowers

'Autumn Days' Chrysanthemums
Chrysanthemums are associated with protection, particularly of the metaphysical kind. © Patrick Johns/Corbis/VCG / Getty Images

Autumn flowers like marigolds and chrysanthemums are always appropriate at Samhain. Often associated with protection, particularly of the metaphysical sort, chrysanthemums come in handy when working with the spirit world. In some traditions, they’re a centerpiece for funeral decorations or grave memorials, most likely because they’re blooming around Samhain. You can dry the heads and use them in loose-leaf incense blends for fall rituals. From a magical standpoint, these fall beauties are associated with the sun itself, and are thus often associated with fire.

03
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Apples, Branches, and Blossoms

Organic Apples on Tree
picturegarden / Getty Images

Apples appear in a number of belief systems as being sacred to the gods. During Samhain, the apple-picking season is winding down in many areas, and in many early agricultural societies, a good apple harvest meant that the gods were showing the community their favor. You can use apples in a number of magical ways, including a few different methods of divination.

If you’ve harvested the blossoms from an apple tree and dried them out for storage, be sure to incorporate those into your workings as well. The apple was considered a symbol of immortality. Interestingly, it's also seen as a food for the dead, which is why Samhain is sometimes referred to as the Feast of Apples. In Celtic myth, an apple branch bearing grown fruit, flowers, and unopened buds was a magical key to the land of the Underworld.

The apple is often found as a component in love magic, and the blossoms may be added to incenses and brews. In traditional folklore, apples are used as part of love divination — peel the apple in a continuous length, and when the first strip of peel falls off, it will form the initial of the person you are to marry. Cut an apple in half and count the seeds — an even number means marriage is coming, an uneven number indicates that you'll remain single for a while.

04
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Pomegranates

Pomegranate, close-up
The pomegranate is the symbol of Demeter and her lost daughter, Persephone. cooksimage / Multi-bits / Getty Images

Pomegranates feature prominently in the story of Demeter and Persephone. Associated with the realm of the underworld, pomegranates can be used in rituals involving communication with the dead.

Interestingly, pomegranates are also associated with fertility magic in the fall. The fruit contains hundreds of seeds inside each one, and they're all different, so many people see the pomegranate's fertility associations as representative of diversity. Choose where and when you plant your seeds wisely, and nourish whatever abundance results.

05
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Squashes, Pumpkins, and Gourds

Pumpkin display for Halloween
Malcolm P Chapman / Getty Images

Squashes – and this includes pumpkins and gourds – are typically associated with the abundance of the late harvest season. In many areas, by the time Samhain rolls around, the squash crops and pumpkin patches are beginning to dwindle. However, squashes are fairly hardy and store well in the right conditions, they can last several months, providing sustenance for your family even when the fields are bare and covered in snow.

Some traditions associate the squash family with psychic awareness and development. Others connect it to protection – you can carve sigils and symbols of protection into a squash and place it in a window or doorway to protect from metaphysical attack.

06
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Mugwort

Silver Green Foliage of Mugwort (Artemesia)
Ron Evans / Getty Images

Mugwort is found in some magical traditions that associate it with divination and dreaming. If someone has overactive dreams, they can be balanced out with a ritual bath made from mugwort and indulged in prior to bedtime. Bald’s Leechbook, an herbal from around the ninth century, refers to the use of mugwort to cast out demonic possession. The author also recommends heating a large stone in the fireplace, then sprinkling it with mugwort, and adding water to create a steam for the patient to inhale.

Use mugwort baths or incense in rituals focusing on treating depression. Make a set of smudge sticks using dried mugwort, to use in ritual settings bringing about prophecy or divinatory needs. Place sprigs of mugwort under your pillow to prevent astral attacks, or to ward off psychic attacks from those who would do you harm.

07
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Rowan Trees

Close up of rowanberries
Rowan can keep evil spirits out of the house. Libo / 500px / Getty Images

Rowan branches and berries were used – and actually, still are – in Scotland and parts of northern England as a way to keep evil spirits out of the house. The berries are associated with good health, but if you plant a bush near a grave, it will keep the dead from rising.

Much like Beltane, six months away, Samhain is a night when the spirit world sees an awful lot of activity. You can hang rowan branches around your home, or a sprig of berries over doors and windows, to keep the spirits at bay. The berries, when split in half, reveal a small pentagram inside. 

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Wigington, Patti. "Sacred Plants of the Samhain Sabbat." Learn Religions, Mar. 4, 2021, learnreligions.com/sacred-plants-of-the-samhain-sabbat-3879864. Wigington, Patti. (2021, March 4). Sacred Plants of the Samhain Sabbat. Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/sacred-plants-of-the-samhain-sabbat-3879864 Wigington, Patti. "Sacred Plants of the Samhain Sabbat." Learn Religions. https://www.learnreligions.com/sacred-plants-of-the-samhain-sabbat-3879864 (accessed March 28, 2024).