Henbane (Hyoscyamus niger)
sown 12/08, flowering 04/10
In German folklore exists the idea that witches and even the Devil Himself would take on the shape of a bumblebee. Candles made of Bumblebees-wax were lit in churches if a witch was to be burnt at the stake. People who had committed crimes were believed to be cursed to having to return as bumblebees upon death. The sub-earthen sound of a bumblebee would signal the presence the dead. Sometimes bumblebees were given at black masses instead of consecrated wavers. Bumblebees were superstitiously feared as carriers of sickness and ritually buried to drive out plague. Other folklore tells that a bumblebee worn in the purse would insure it would always stay filled with coins. He who managed to secretly steal the bumblebees' honey was destined to find a huge treasure.
Read more about the Henbane herb at our Garden Blog:
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