A HANDY, PRACTICAL & CORNY GUIDE
Hell hath no fury like a woman corned! (sorry). Cornflower is a favourite herb of ours at Tragic Beautiful: its beautiful blue petals are vibrant addition when working with colour magick and a wide range of magickal properties! The cornflower seeds from Tragic Bountiful are centaurea cyanus which is native to Europe and flowers during summer. You may even be lucky enough to see some red, white or pink flowers sprout!
A QUICK GUIDE TO CORNFLOWER
Magickal uses: Enhance psychic awakening, access self-knowledge, awaken Third Eye Chakra
Plant me: In full sun, 15 - 20cm apart, between August and December
Water me: When the soil is dry, does not need soaking
Safe for: Cats and dogs!
Edible: Yep! The flowers of cornflower have a slightly spicy and sweet flavour, similar to cloves - add it to your salads or whole flowers in witchcraft cocktails!
Note - the bright blue colour attracts bees, keep this in mind if you are allergic
CORNFLOWER FOLKLORE
Cornflower's scientific name centaurea comes from the centaur, a half-man half-horse creature from Ancient Greek mythology. It was said that the wise centaur Chiron would use cornflower to treat wounds caused by arrows poisoned with Hydra blood.
Cornflower gained its common English name as it was often found growing in fields of grain and considered a weed (corn was once the general term for food grains like barley, rye, wheat, etc.). This can be seen depicted in artist Vincent van Gogh's painting Wheat Field with Cornflowers. Cornflower is also colloquially known as bachelor's button, as single young men in the Victorian era would often wear these flowers in their buttonholes when searching for a partner.
MAGICKAL PROPERTIES & USES IN WITCHCRAFT
- Gender: Feminine
- Planet: Venus, Saturn
- Element: Air, Earth
As mentioned previously, cornflower is incredibly versatile; it's a powerful herb for the psychic witch, with abilities including enhancing psychic awakening, accessing self-knowledge, and awakening the Third Eye Chakra. Prepare for meditation or divination sessions by drinking tea infused with cornflower petals to take advantage of this.
Use its powers of love drawing by sprinkling dried petals in your right shoe or carry in a sachet on your person. Create vibrant blue ink with the petals for writing your grimoire or using the magick of the written word.
TIPS FOR GROWING CORNFLOWER
Cornflower is a blessing to impatient gardeners as the seeds will only take a week to start sprouting. Scatter them where they can be exposed to full sun about 15-20cm apart between August and December. They don't require a full on soaking and simply appreciate being watered when their soil gets dry. The stalks grow quite tall, potentially reaching up to 90cm high! Their long stems make them easy to display in vases and weave into garlands but they truly look their best on display where they grow, attracting bees with their beautiful blue. Best of all, cornflower is non-toxic for both cats and dogs!
Photography by Maja Erwinsdotter and Nikita Turkovich
