Vervain

Called "the enchanter's plant." Vervain is a herb of consecration, what it touches becomes set apart for sacred use.

Botanical name: Verbena officinalis.

Traditional planetary association: Venus.

Traditional elemental association: Earth.

Druids gathered vervain by moonlight; Roman priests used it to clean the altar of Jupiter; medieval physicians called it "holy herb." Few plants have been honored so widely.

Used to wash altar cloths, sprinkle the threshold of a sanctuary, and bless ritual tools at their first use.

Carried for protection on long journeys.

A gentle nervine and digestive bitter.

Avoid in pregnancy.