Gentian

Gentiana amarella
Gentian is a biannual that produces a rosette of leaves in the first year. Then in the second year a short flowering stalk (10-20cm) with small, purple, trumpet flowers appears. There are five petal-lobes with a white fringe at the throat, The leaves are lanceolate and clasp the stem. Flowers grow from the axil on a short stalk. Gentian flowers only in autumn, it is purple/violet but not blue, nor spotted. The Chiltern gentian (G. Germanica) is similar but with rather larger flowers.

Dyer’s Greenweed

Genista tinctoria
Dyer’s greenweed – perennial broom-like shrub to 60cm(2ft) with erect, stiff branches bearing simple, alternate, spear-shaped leaves. From mid-summer to early autumn, bright yellow, pea-like flowers grow in thick spikes at the ends of the shoots, followed by smooth seed pods that ripen to brown.

Costmary

Chrysanthemum balsamita
Costmary – perennial to 1m(3ft) with wide, grey-green, ovate, sweet-,smelling leaves that have serrated edges. The yellow, button-like flowers of costmary resemble those of tans and appear in loose clusters from late summer to early autumn.

Corydalis

Corydalis yanhusuo
Corydalis
Corydalis Rhizome
Corydalis is a low-growing plant with narrow leaves and pink flowers that is native to northern China, Japan, and Siberia. This opium-poppy relative survives the harsh conditions of northeast Asia by storing most of its energy reserves in its hard, bright-yellow tuber. The root is unearthed in autumn, dried, and then sliced into cross sections for use in herbal medicine.

AUTUMN EQUINOX / MABON

North-September 21

South-March 21

 

The Fall Equinox, or Mabon, is celebrated as the final harvest of the season. This holiday was pivotal in ancient times, since a good final harvest was crucial to surviving the winter months ahead. This is the time of year where we truly reap what we have sown and we prepare for the long winter that lays before us. The day and night are again equal in time and the God has traveled at last to His place of rest. Now, He has sacrificed the last of Himself to provide us with a final harvest of food before the winter begins. Celebrants gather to mark the turning of the wheel and to give thanks for the ultimate sacrifice of The God, recognizing that He will be reborn at Yule. This holiday has been called “The Witches’ Thanksgiving” and is a time for feasting together with family and friends. This is also the time to welcome the season of the Crone. Kore’ goes to the Underworld to learn the secrets of the Crone (or in some stories she is kidnapped by Hades), and the earth is bare as Her mother, Demeter, mourns Her loss. But although the winter is before us, we know that the wheel will turn again, life will be reborn, and our blessings are bountiful.