- Botanical Name
- Artemisia absinthium
Wormwood
Details
Wormwood is a silvery, strongly scented perennial of the daisy family, Asteraceae, native to North Africa and temperate Eurasia. Wikipedia says it flavours the spirit absinthe and some bitters and vermouths, and that its essential oil contains thujone. Cunningham calls it masculine, with Mars and fire, and lists psychic powers, protection, love and calling spirits. Kynes gives fire, Cancer, Gemini, Mars and Pluto, with Artemis, Diana and Isis, and lists banishing, binding, divination, purification and protection. Cunningham has it burned or worn for psychic powers, protecting vehicles and summoning spirits. Kynes has a sachet set in the highest place to banish a spirit, and writes of sprigs hung over doors and German funeral biers. Cunningham and Kynes mark the plant poisonous, and the American Herbal Products Association adds cautions, all set out in the safety notes.
Caution
Cunningham marks wormwood Poison, which in his key means never to be used internally or on the skin, and calls absinthe highly addictive and dangerous. Kynes says all parts are toxic if ingested and fatal in large amounts. The American Herbal Products Association says not to use it in pregnancy or lactation, not to use it long term, and not to exceed 1.5 g of dried herb in tea two or three times daily. It says thujone may cause convulsions, that overdose of the essential oil has caused seizures, muscle breakdown, vomiting, cramps, urine retention and, in severe cases, confusion and kidney lesions, and that thujone may be hazardous to anyone with a defect in liver heme synthesis.
Correspondences
- Elements
- Fire
- Celestial Bodies
- Mars, Pluto
- Zodiac Signs
- Cancer, Gemini
- Colours
- No colours recorded.
- Deities
- Artemis (Greek), Diana (Roman), Iris (Greek), Isis (Egyptian; also called Aset)
Folk Names
- Absinthe
- Common Wormwood
- Crown for a King
- Madderwort
- Old Woman
- Sagewort
- The Green Fairy
- Wormit
- Wormot
Categories
- Banishing
- Binding
- Challenges
- Divination
- Fidelity
- Funeral Rites
- Hex-Breaking
- Love
- Protection
- Psychic Work
- Purification
- Renewal
- Sex
- Sexuality
- Spirit Work
Substitutes
No substitutes recorded.
Forms
Flower
Kynes sells a flower essence, which she has put on tools for psychic abilities.
References
Herb Toxic
Cunningham has the herb burned in incense, worn, and mixed with sandalwood to summon spirits. Kynes sells cut, dried leaves and stems, and the American Herbal Products Association names the herb as the part it covers.
Caution
Cunningham marks wormwood Poison. Kynes says all parts are toxic if ingested and fatal in large amounts. The American Herbal Products Association says not to use the herb in pregnancy or lactation or long term.
References
Notes
- Cunningham, Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical, under "Wormwood"; p. 266.
- Gardner and McGuffin, American Herbal Products Association's, pp. 91-92.
- Kynes, Witches' Encyclopedia of Magical, under "Wormwood".
- Wikipedia, under "Artemisia absinthium."
- Kynes, Witches' Encyclopedia of Magical, under "Wormwood".
- Cunningham, Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical, under "Wormwood"; p. 266.
- Gardner and McGuffin, American Herbal Products Association's, pp. 91-92.
- Kynes, Witches' Encyclopedia of Magical, under "Wormwood".
Bibliography
- Cunningham, Scott. Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs. 2nd ed. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2012. (EPUB.)
1 6 - Gardner, Zoë, and Michael McGuffin, eds. American Herbal Products Association's Botanical Safety Handbook. 2nd ed. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2013. (PDF.)
2 7 - Kynes, Sandra. The Witches' Encyclopedia of Magical Plants: History, Folklore, Correspondences, and Spells. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2024. (EPUB.)
3 5 8 - Wikipedia, under "Artemisia absinthium." Accessed October 23, 2026. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Artemisia_absinthium&oldid=1363524959. Open the Source (opens in a new tab)
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