H E R B S D A Y T H U R S D A Y

Each Thursday we take a look at the magical properties of different herbs & how we can use them to enhance our lives. Today we are going to be looking at the magical properties of Forget Me Nots.

Zodiac: Libra

Solar system: Venus

Element: Air

Gender: Masculine

Powers: True Love & Respect

General Information

Forget me nots are dainty star-shaped flowers in the borage family. Their flowers are borne in clusters and maybe blue, white, violet or pink with bright yellow centres.

Alternate green leaves seemed to the ancient Greeks to be shaped like a mouse’s ears.

Their seed pods disperse themselves by clinging to fur and clothing and some species of forget me not have escaped cultivation and become weedy invaders in wetlands and along riverbanks.

History and Folklore

Henry IV adopted the forget-me-not as his emblem in 1398.

Medieval Germany, forget-me-nots were worn by lovers to ensure they would not forget each other while they were apart.

Newfoundland, forget-me-nots were once used to commemorate the war dead.
In the Victorian language of flowers, the forget-me-not means friendship, loving remembrance, and fidelity.

In Germany in the early 20th century, the flower was a reminder not to forget the poor and destitute and Freemasons distributed them among themselves to remind each other of charitable activities.

According to legend, Freemasons used the flower in place of the traditional square and compass design to identify one another secretly and to avoid detection by the Nazis.

Today, the forget-me-not symbol is used interchangeably with the square and compass symbol as a symbol of Freemasonry, especially in Germany.

Legend’s of the Name’s Origin

When God was naming all the flowers, one small flower cried out “Forget me not, O Lord!” and God said, “That shall be your name!”.
When God was giving the world its color, one small flower cried out “Forget me not, O Lord!” but there was only the smallest bit of blue left, so he painted the flower with the palest blue and it was called forget-me-not.
When the Christ Child was sitting on Mary’s lap one day, he decided that the whole world should know the beautiful blue of her eyes and waved his hand and forget-me-nots sprung up.
As a knight and his lady walked along the river, the knight bent down to pick his lady some flowers, but he slipped and fell into the river and the weight of his armour bore him down. As he slipped beneath the water he cried out “Forget-me-not”!

Growing Forget Me Nots

Forget me Nots do well in full to partial shade and prefer a moist environment. Forget-me-nots bloom in the springtime.

There are both perennial and annual varieties. Annuals and perennials alike reseed vigorously.

Forget-me-not cannot tolerate temperatures below -33 degrees F and cannot tolerate drought conditions.

Magical Attributes

Forget-me-Not can be worn or carried to keep a lover close to your heart. Give forget-me-nots to someone you would like to keep in mind.

Healing

Forget-me-not has been used for lung problems and nose bleeds. However, there is some concern about liver damage and cancer.

There is no evidence that it is particularly helpful in any case so it’s not the best plant for your herbal medicine chest. The flowers are sometimes steeped to make a soothing herbal tea.

This is safe enough if not done on a regular basis, but probably not worth it.

Source:https://witchipedia.com/