Periwinkle- Vinca major, Vinca minor, Vinca spp.You may not expect to find this lovely, adorable little flower in Hekate’s garden, but there it belongs! We tend not to think of it as poisonous because it is so often used as an ornamental plant, but it is indeed a toxic herb that can seriously harm the body, so it makes a suitable contribution to this series. The name Vinca comes from the Latin vincire, meaning “to bind”, as this plant grows in long, deep-green leafed tendrils that will dip and creep along the ground, creating large patches of connected plants that may completely bury and strangle out their neighbors. They are often blue or purple, but can be a variety of other colors, including white, pink, and red. The flowers are five-lobed across the species, already indicating a relationship with the goddess of witchcraft, Hekate.
The folk names for this plant speak to its power and its overall likability. Sorcerer’s violet, Devil’s eye, Joy on the Ground, blue buttons, cut finger, Creeping Myrtle in the US and gravmyrt (grave myrtle) in Sweden, (a link to Aphrodite-Venus and to Demeter, both of whom the myrtle is sacred to), centocchio (hundred eyes), and blume der unsterblichkeit (flower of immortality). It is linked to memory, beauty, magic, and death in equal measure, which are all very Hekatean things, to be sure! One of its Italian names, fiore di morto (flower of death), refers to its use as a funerary plant. It was woven into garlands used in burials of children, which, I think, brings it even closer to Hekate as the guide of the souls who die before their allotted time.
In herbalism, periwinkle is used for a variety of maladies, though always in small doses. This is what we call a “micro-dose herb”, as it is best if it takes up a very small amount of whatever remedy it is an ingredient of. It is most often used as a vulnerary, a wound healer. It works well with topical and internal wounds, often as a wash. Simmered at a low heat with other antimicrobial herbs, such as sage, it can help to heal cuts, burns, blisters, and ulcerations (such as canker sores). A leaf of the plant can be chewed directly from the plant, too, but it is not very appetizing. It has also been used for diarrhea, gas, indigestion, toothache, ocular inflammation, insect stings, skin disorders, hypertension, and dysmenorrhea. Its primary alkaloid, vincamine, also acts as a cerebral stimulant, aiding memory, focus, and acuity. A semisynthetic derivative of this alkaloid is sold as vinpocetine and is the most often used extract obtained from this plant. Other derivatives called vinblastine and vincristine are made from Catharanthus (Vinca) rosea, a closely related plant, to fight various forms of cancer, including lymphoma, leukemia, Kaposi sarcoma, and non-small cell lung cancer, among many others. Its constituents are undergoing further research to discover their efficacy in treating things like Alzheimer’s dementia and other cognitive decline issues.
You can read the full article here: Periwinkle in the Garden of Hekate
I know Crows and periwinkle are symbolisms of Hecate
They steal my chips, get lots here
