Kew – The Witch’s Garden: Plants in Folklore, Magic and Traditional Medicine

The Witch’s Garden describes over 50 of the world’s most powerful, harmful, legendary and storied plants.  From the screaming mandrake to calming St John’s Wort, to predicting the weather with seaweed, the creation of salves for broken hearts, sore heads, protection from evil spirits and to even induce immortality. Wise women, apothecaries, witches, herbalists: whatever you like to call them, those who cultivate plants for their apparent mystical properties have existed for thousands of years.

The Witch’s Garden tells the story of our folkloric fascination with these magical specimens, documenting the beliefs and rituals surrounding the natural world. Illustrated with pages from herbals held within the archives of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, along with botanical illustrations and archival images depicting magic and mayhem, The Witch’s Garden beautifully evokes the bewitching nature of mysterious plants.