Category: GREEK MYTHOLOGY
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ANEMONE
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Anemone Lisa Karen Miller “The first spring-blown anemone she in his doublet wove, To keep him safe from pestilence wherever he should rove.” This delicate flower sprang up where Aphrodite’s tears fell as she wept over the death of Adonis, so it is sacred to…
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VIOLET
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Violet Lisa Karen Miller When Zeus fell in love with Io, his wife Hera was none too pleased. To keep Io hidden from wifey’s wrath, he turned her into a white heifer, then created a field of violets to feed her. In a flash of…
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SUNFLOWER
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Sunflower Lisa Karen Miller Who doesn’t love a sunflower? From towering giants to dwarf varieties, these bee magnets have graced our summer gardens for centuries. In the language of flowers, the sunflower says “My eyes see only you.” It originated in South and Central…
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POMEGRANATE
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Pomegranate Lisa Karen Miller When Persephone was snatched by Hades and taken to the underworld he ruled, her mother Demeter searched the earth for her, fruitlessly. The goddess of grains neglected her duties while she searched for her daughter, causing the earth to grow cold…
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PEONY
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Peony Lisa Karen Miller During a spectacular battle, one of Herakles’ arrows finds Pluto’s shoulder. The god of the underworld looks for Asklepios, the god of medicine, on Mount Olympus. Finding only a student of his, Paean, he submits to his treatment – a decoction…
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PARSLEY
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Parsley Lisa Karen Miller Parsley was brought to Newfoundland before 1620 by British sea captain John Mason, and was grown by the Plymouth colonists in their first gardens. Its culinary and medicinal uses had been widely known for centuries. Unfortunately, this common and useful herb…
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OREGANO
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Oregano Lisa Karen Miller Origanum vulgare was virtually unknown in the United States until the end of World War II, when soldiers who had been stationed in the Mediterranean made a point of bringing seeds home with them. The “pizza herb” comes in…
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IRIS
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Iris Lisa Karen Miller Iris was the Greek goddess of the rainbow, and the swift messenger of Hera and Zeus. Indeed, this popular perennial now comes in a rainbow of colors. Like the band of colors that appears in the sky, she has a bloom…
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HYACINTH
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Hyacinth Lisa Karen Miller Any Keeping Up Appearances fans out there? Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced bouquet) is the “Look at me; I’m rare and exquisite” sister – rather showy and superficial. References to this bulb are found in some of our earliest writings. Native to the…
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FENNEL
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Fennel Lisa Karen Miller So many of us make a resolution to lose weight. Every. Single. New. Year. This year, fennel might just help us make it. It has long been used as an appetite suppressant. William Coles, in Nature’s Paradise (1650) affirms that…
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ELM
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Elm Lisa Karen Miller Orpheus rescued his beloved wife Eurydice from the underworld by strumming his harp to enchant and render immobile those who would keep her there. He then paused long enough to play her a love song. From that spot sprang the…
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DAFFODIL
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Daffodil Lisa Karen Miller A favorite harbinger of Spring, so beloved is the daffodil that it now comes in a dizzying array of colors and forms – double, ruffled, split cup, etc. In the language of flowers, it says “Regard; Deceitful Hope.” Representing rebirth and…
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CROCUS
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Crocus Lisa Karen Miller Hermes, the herald of the Greek gods, was enjoying a game of discus. His lover Crocus stood up at just the wrong moment. Grief stricken, Hermes transformed the youth into a flower. Three drops of blood that had dripped from his…
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ARTEMISIA
THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Artemisia Lisa Karen Miller You’ve probably eaten or grown this plant, though you might not have known it by this name. Sacred to and named for Artemis, the goddess of the moon, the hunt, and chastity, Artemisia boasts some 180 species. Artemisia abrotanum, Southernwood,…
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ACANTHUS
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ACHILLEA
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Folklore of Plants 