October Specials: See What's New

Magickal Spot x Moody Moons: Exciting News

Free Spellcasting Consultations: Contact Us

By Moody Moons, Natural Living

Foraging for Witchcraft: A Beginner’s Guide

Updated on:

/

Written by: Lumina Indigo (Moody Moons)

/

Reviewed by: Tina Caro

Discover the benefits of foraging for witchcraft!  From beginners to advanced practitioners, learning to forage for spell ingredients enriches your magical repertoire and comes with some surprising rewards.

What is foraging?

Foraging is the art and practice of finding food, tools and medicinal herbs in their wild habitat.

Foraging is typically done by hand, and usually for individual use.

Lately, the modern foraging movement seems to be taking off in a big way.

Within the last few years, culinary enthusiasts began to revive the practice as a way to procure local, natural and healthy ingredients on the cheap.

Live in the big city?  Even urban foraging has become downright trendy.

Of course, foraging is hardly a modern practice.  Your ancestors foraged as a way of life.  You may recall during your early education learning about the early “hunter-gatherers” of pre-agriculture human civilization.

But its comeback fits perfectly with nature based religions.

The Benefits of Foraging for Witchcraft

Applying foraging knowledge to witchcraft seems like a logical, natural inclination.

But if you need some concrete reasons to give it a try, here’s a few to consider.

Find Free Spell Ingredients

Many witches seek to find spell ingredients in their purest, most natural form.  They spend a lot of money on high-quality, organic herbs and oils in order to bring the very best into their ritual space.

But what if you’re not prepared to spend $10-$50 an ounce on premium herbs and oils?

Well, foraging offers an economical alternative.

(Combine this concept with this article for using ordinary household items in witchcraft, and you’ll have everything you need without spending a dime).

Spend More Time in Nature

Did you know the average American spends 93% of their time either indoors or driving?

Being outside comes with all kinds of benefits, including reduced stress, increased positive mood and a reduced exposure to indoor pollutants.

For the witch (or anyone with a nature-based spiritual practice), spending time outdoors is an essential part of spiritual life.

But while passively sitting in nature is certainly time well spent, actively engaging in the natural world connects you all the more deeply to it.

Foraging for your witchcraft spell ingredients forces you to get outside and actually plunge your hands into the earth’s abundance.

Expand Your Knowledge

If you’ve never foraged, you’re living blindly surrounded by the generous gifts of the natural world around you.

Whether you live near the ocean, on a mountaintop, or nestled amid the fertile valleys in between, everything you need to live is in the land around you.

Foraging forces you to get to know that land intimately in a way you’ll never forget.

Once you know what a sassafras leaf looks like, or wild onion, or a cedar tree, you can’t not know anymore.  You’ll see them everywhere!  And once you know what they look like, you can begin to learn how to gather and use them.

Stay in Tune with the Seasons

Most nature-based forms of witchcraft place a strong emphasis on staying “in tune with,” or connected to, the seasonal changes around you.

Foraging puts this philosophy into practice by focusing on what’s available, local and in-season right now.

Be consistent with your respect for nature by learning ethical foraging practices.

Tips for Foraging for Spell Ingredients

Ready to get started?  Here’s a few tips to level off the learning curve.

Try Working Backwards

While going on a “treasure hunt” for a coveted wild mushroom or deep-forest herb makes for a fun way to spend a nice day, it’s not the only approach!

Rather than deciding what to look for and then searching for it in the wild, try finding something in the wild and then learning how to use it.

Choose a plant that you happen to know grows in abundance near where you live.

Dandelions, for example, grow almost everywhere in North America in the spring.  They’re an invasive species, so you’re not taking anything endangered.  And dandelions also offer many ritual uses in witchcraft!

Personally, I started foraging in my hometown in Northern Virginia, where Virginia juniper grows abundantly.  Over the course of about three years, I learned to work with it expertly as a base for smudge wands.

So go outside and find something!  Anything!  Clover, wild garlic, wild violets, garden roses, whatever!  Learn their specific uses in witchcraft and then apply your new knowledge. Before you know it, the whole world will fill up with magical

Find the Wastelands

Recently cleared lands are fertile ground for powerful spell ingredients like morning glories and mugwort.  The edges of the forest, areas around railways, and recently cleared farmland often grow tenacious, powerful plants in abundance.

However, you should only look for herbs like this if you already have a working knowledge of herbalism and can confidently identify dangerous plants.  Many of these herbs are magically potent for good reason, and some are deadly poisonous.

It’s essential to know exactly what you’re looking for and how to handle it before you venture out.

If this makes you nervous, it’s a good sign you’re not ready for it.  Try getting started with the basics of magical herbalism first.

Get to Know Your Weeds

While the word weeds often calls to mind a certain peskiness associated with gardening, your weeds among the mostly likely plants in your yard to have natural nutritional, healing and yes, magical benefits.

As a bonus, anything considered a “weed” is usually annoyingly abundant.  So as long as you ask permission, most people are quite happy to let you take as much of it as you want out of their yards and farmland.

Don’t Forget About Rocks

Before you shell out half a paycheck at the gem shop, take a look around your own area.  Most habitats have some kind of mineral specialty that can be found easily in the wild.

Google your area + natural gemstones and see what’s available.

Then, set out to find some!

. . . . And Everything Else

Snake skins, sea shells, sand, rainwater, discarded turtle shells, even animal bones all have usable components for witchcraft.

Whatever treasures your local wildlife offers, learning to use it in your practice will connect your landscape,

It Doesn’t Have to Take Much Time

Everything in the above feature image I found during a 10-minute walk around my neighborhood.

All of it is useful.  There’s wild raspberries for love spells, wisteria for goddess energy, oak leaves to use in my Litha incense, pine cones for abundance, ect.

5 spring items to forage for and use in spells, witchcraft and magic.
5 spring items to forage for and use in spells, witchcraft and magic.

Personally, I love nothing better than to go on an 8-mile hike and spend the whole afternoon deep in the wilderness, but you don’t have to.

The world is full of natural spell ingredients right within walking distance of your house.  All you need do is step outside.

How to get to know the plants, stones and other natural items in your area and use them in witchcraft.

Share This Post

About Lumina (Moody Moons' Founder)

Lumina Indigo began Moody Moons in 2012 to produce beautiful, elegant, intriguing content of interest to the magical and witchcraft community.

She specializes in in-depth research and reporting on various topics in modern spirituality.

With over 20 years of experience with the modern pagan community, Lumina is a professional tarot reader, and a kitchen witch culinary wizard.

Leave a Comment

What Is Missing In Your Life Today That You Deeply Desire?

Is it finding new love or making the existing one healthier than ever? Is it maybe some positivity that would make your life flourish as you've never thought it could? Or is it something unique that your life is missing?

Spellcasting is an art that must NOT be taken carelessly. If you are trying to solve a problem you're facing, you should consider hiring a professional witch that cast spells safely for everyone involved. This way, you know it's being done by someone experienced and knowledgeable, and I'm also always here to answer questions about your casting and provide follow-up at no additional charge.

I've been casting spells for more than a decade and have worked privately with clients from all over the world.

You can expect private sessions, customized spells that I'll create just for you, and free consultations before and after spell casting. You can also read hundreds of different testimonials that you can find at each spell.

Below you'll find spells you can order and what it is this month's special spell casting!