Mugwort

[witchywolf]

Hello, it's been a very, very long time since i've been on here. mainly been getting used to my new son :) other then that i've been coming across quite a few articles, mainly on my facebook newsfeed about Mugwort, and that it's very benificial not just physically but for witchy stuff as well, and i've been curious. but it's really hard to get my hands on, so i guess the question(s) are:

 

1- for any who have tried the herb, how did it effect you, and anything i should know?

 

2- where the hell do i find some? lol it's nearly impossible where i live. either that or i'm not looking in the right place lol

 

Thank you for any input, and hopfully i can be on here more now that i can manage my time better lol.

[ruby]

I drink a tea blend that includes mugwort occasionally. I am sensitive to everything it seems and it is mild even for me. Having said that though, I don't think it is an herb you would want to use on an everyday basis- thujone content and all. It's easy to grow and is not hard to find seeds. If you want the organic herb though, you can find it online...

 

Here is an old thread I started a few years back to get you started on info. here. I'm sure others will pop in here and give their thoughts as well. Good luck, it's a cool herb.

 

http://www.traditionalwitch.net/forums/topic/8511-mugwort-tea/?hl=%2Bmugwort+%2Btea

[Solanaceae]

I see you are in Canada, although not anywhere near me. Here it grows every where imaginable from spring till fall. It is supposedly well distributed from coast to coast in Canada, so it could be growing somewhere near you. Look for it in scrubby areas at the sides of roads and forgotten fields. Of course, you would have to wait till late spring. There are many Canadian suppliers of the seeds and herb. I enjoy working with this plant. She is gentle and mild. The biggest effect I have found is if I smoke a small pipe bowl or two full ( leaves and flowers ) before bed. Always produces vivid and symbolically rich dreams for me. Not recommended for daily use, as Anara stated above.

[RapunzelGnome]

Mugwort has helped me start dreaming again after I went a long time without any dreams (that I could remember). The dreams tend to be pleasant, vivid and not too intensely emotional.

 

I put a small amount in a dream pillow. Occasionally, I've put a small amount in camomile tea or used it in incense during divination with moderate success. It's a pretty subtle effect for me.

[witchywolf]

I see you are in Canada, although not anywhere near me. Here it grows every where imaginable from spring till fall. It is supposedly well distributed from coast to coast in Canada, so it could be growing somewhere near you. Look for it in scrubby areas at the sides of roads and forgotten fields. Of course, you would have to wait till late spring. There are many Canadian suppliers of the seeds and herb. I enjoy working with this plant. She is gentle and mild. The biggest effect I have found is if I smoke a small pipe bowl or two full ( leaves and flowers ) before bed. Always produces vivid and symbolically rich dreams for me. Not recommended for daily use, as Anara stated above.

 

yeah i was wondering about the smoking part as well as the tea because i've read in a few places that it could be smoked, of course, not everyone is up for trying that so it's hard to hear first hand exleriance lol , How big of an effect are we talking here? :thinking: lol

Edited January 31, 2016 by witchywolf

[Solanaceae]

When taken in any form by itself while you are awake mugwort ( artemisia vulgaris ) has an extremely mild and subtle effect. This is what I have experienced myself, and what I have heard from others. Some have compared it to a a very light cannabis like feel. Mild euphoria, a feeling of calm, relaxation and well being. You may experience very subtle visuals, flitting shadows out of the corner of your eye for example. The spirit world could become slightly more visible. Meditation or trance could become easier or produce more visuals.

 

Some people do get headaches from use of mugwort. Best thing is to start with a very low dose the first time. You may experience nothing at all, so next time try a bit more.

 

For me, the real magic happens after I fall asleep. This is reportedly a common effect among users. It has been called the dream herb, and for good reason. Lucid dreaming becomes easier. Dreams become more vivid, possibly more meaningful. Dream recall is improved. Astral projection or dream travel may become easier. RG mentioned the dream pillow, a good way to get the sleep effects without actually ingesting it.

 

Thujone is toxic in large amounts, so you don't want to ingest it too often or in very high doses. Mixing it with other substances, such cannabis will increase and alter its effect. Mixing with alcohol will increase its effects, but also will increase its toxicity. It is closely related to wormwood ( artemisia absinthium ) and the effects can be very similar however I find them more subtle. You may know that wormwood is the key ingredient in absinthe. It is the combination of wormwood and alcohol that gave absinthe such a mythical and sometimes formidable reputation.

 

Mugwort is very warm and welcoming and forgiving in my opinion. If treated with respect she is a wonderful teacher. If you are new to psychoactive plants, this is probably just about the safest and most welcoming one you could try.

[Aurelian]

Order it online. It's not a controlled substance, and it can be quite useful for a variety of things.

[ScyldisBlackbriar]

Hi witchywolf,

 

Can you order from www.mountainroseherbs.com? They have really great, high quality organic Mugwort. I know that it can't be sold in Louisiana, USA, so maybe Canada also has restrictions that I'm unaware of.

 

She effects people differently, I think. Some folks claim it does "nothing" for them, but I commonly hear from people who "don't dream", that taking Mugwort at bedtime gradually helped them to dream, even if they had trouble remembering what the dreams were. I think this hints at her gentleness, yet there is an effect occurring.

 

I use an herbal tea blend that contains Mugwort, Cinnamon, and Jasmine combined with slightly sedative herbs like Chamomile because it does promote vivid dreaming but without too much stimulation in the night where I can't function the next day due to lack of rest.

 

Pleasant dreams!

Edited February 3, 2016 by ScyldisBlackbriar

[ScyldisBlackbriar]

 

When taken in any form by itself while you are awake mugwort ( artemisia vulgaris ) has an extremely mild and subtle effect. This is what I have experienced myself, and what I have heard from others. Some have compared it to a a very light cannabis like feel. Mild euphoria, a feeling of calm, relaxation and well being. You may experience very subtle visuals, flitting shadows out of the corner of your eye for example. The spirit world could become slightly more visible. Meditation or trance could become easier or produce more visuals.

 

Some people do get headaches from use of mugwort. Best thing is to start with a very low dose the first time. You may experience nothing at all, so next time try a bit more.

 

For me, the real magic happens after I fall asleep. This is reportedly a common effect among users. It has been called the dream herb, and for good reason. Lucid dreaming becomes easier. Dreams become more vivid, possibly more meaningful. Dream recall is improved. Astral projection or dream travel may become easier. RG mentioned the dream pillow, a good way to get the sleep effects without actually ingesting it.

 

Thujone is toxic in large amounts, so you don't want to ingest it too often or in very high doses. Mixing it with other substances, such cannabis will increase and alter its effect. Mixing with alcohol will increase its effects, but also will increase its toxicity. It is closely related to wormwood ( artemisia absinthium ) and the effects can be very similar however I find them more subtle. You may know that wormwood is the key ingredient in absinthe. It is the combination of wormwood and alcohol that gave absinthe such a mythical and sometimes formidable reputation.

 

Mugwort is very warm and welcoming and forgiving in my opinion. If treated with respect she is a wonderful teacher. If you are new to psychoactive plants, this is probably just about the safest and most welcoming one you could try.

 

Solanaceae, I was wondering if you have tried using Mugwort tincture? If so, what dosage, and what was the experience like compared to tea?

[Solanaceae]

I have not used a tincture myself. As I stated earlier, mixing with alcohol would increase toxicity, so keep that in mind if you use alcohol to tincture. I would at some point like to try making my own version of absinthe. This could be done with mugwort instead of wormwood as well. Mugwort actually has less thujone then wormwood so could be a bit safer.

[RavenFlyer]

I just canned 3 tinctures. Mugwort, Damiana, and a mugwort Damiana blend.

[Solanaceae]

RF, care to share how it works for you?

[RavenFlyer]

I definitely will. It has a few more weeks to sit before I strain it. But I have made the damiana tincture in the past, and it worked really well for me in slipping into a hypnotic state, and having a lot of dreams. It was also a good aphrodisiac. But I would drink about 2-3oz of the tincture. But that recipe was also cut with water, and sweetened with homemade blackberry syrup. This time its just the old fashioned tincture. An ounce of mugwort, an once of damiana, and then a 1/2 ounce of each in their respective jars, and soaking in honey bourbon.

[ScyldisBlackbriar]

 

I definitely will. It has a few more weeks to sit before I strain it. But I have made the damiana tincture in the past, and it worked really well for me in slipping into a hypnotic state, and having a lot of dreams. It was also a good aphrodisiac. But I would drink about 2-3oz of the tincture. But that recipe was also cut with water, and sweetened with homemade blackberry syrup. This time its just the old fashioned tincture. An ounce of mugwort, an once of damiana, and then a 1/2 ounce of each in their respective jars, and soaking in honey bourbon.

Would love to hear about your experience with the mugwort tincture. Out of curiosity, are you using fresh or dried and what herb to alcohol ratio? I've actually never worked with fresh mugwort, and it would be interesting to compare the tincture of fresh vs dried.

[RavenFlyer]

It is dried mugwort and dried Damiana. It's a half ounce of dried herb to a pint of alcohol (roughly). I don't actually measure out weight of my herb.

[Coyote]

Here in Canada I have often acquired mugwort in a dried leaf form from Richter's Herbs in Ontario. They provide an excellent product at a good price.

We mainly make use of mugwort for assisting in trance work and for potent dreaming.

 

https://www.richters.com/

 

Hope this is of some assistance  :)

[Nera]

I have had very unusual and powerful dreams after drinking mugwort tea. It felt like I could communicate easier with my subconscious and the spirit world.

[Zombee]

Is mugwort oil more potent? I bought some, now I'm not sure how to use it internally. I Thought I'd put a few drops on my palms and absorb it.

[NamedForTheMoon]

I think I am going to get the mugwort herb from Mountain Rose Herbs. I saw that they have a dream tea with peppermint and damiana and some other things in it, but I think pure mugwort would work best for me. I'm going to try making a bedtime tea with it.

 

Edit: Actually, I'm going to get the mugwort and the dream tea. Just to try it and see which might be more effective for me. Here's the ingredients for the tea, what do you think? Organic Peppermint leaf, organic Chamomile flower, organic Gotu Kola, organic Mugwort, organic Damiana leaf, organic Rosemary, organic Rose petals and organic Stevia. I think some is just for flavor. I read that Damiana increases sexual desire, does that mean it can cause loads of sex dreams? :D

Edited July 30, 2016 by NamedForTheMoon

[Mountain Witch]

Is mugwort oil more potent? I bought some, now I'm not sure how to use it internally. I Thought I'd put a few drops on my palms and absorb it.

 

Z - Mugwort essential oil or mugwort-infused oil? BIG, BIG difference. If the EO, do not ingest it. And even using it undiluted on the skin can cause some serious issues like rashes or even chemical burns (depends on the oil & individual).

 

If infused oil, different story.  You can use an infused oil like a massage oil or even a salad dressing.

[Zombee]

It's EO. BIG thanks for the heads up. Much appreciated. So basically to use

it topically I have to dilute it.

[NamedForTheMoon]

So I've been using the dream tea for about a week, every other night, sometimes two nights in a row. My dreams feel scattered. Like they move too quickly, they change pace too fast. I have no control. I can't really remember exactly what I was dreaming about when I wake up. I'm not sure that I like it. Maybe I need to take more, maybe I should take less? I don't know.

 

As for the mugwort, I decided to try a teaspoon of the herb in my dream tea. I know that it can cause uterine cramps. I checked on that because of being pregnant, almost 18 weeks, now. But since the dream tea says it contains mugwort, and there isn't any warning about pregnancy on the box, and I didn't have any effects from it regarding my pregnancy, I thought I would handle a little more. So, a teaspoon in the dream tea. I took a small sip when it was ready, and waited. About 10-15 minutes later, I had a pain in my stomach. I thought, Oh no, I'm not doing this. I got up and poured out the tea, and willed my stomach to stop whatever it was doing. It did stop, thank goodness.  I will not be trying mugwort tea again until I'm ready for the baby to be born. I question the amount of mugwort that is actually in the dream tea, I haven't had any feelings of crampiness with it at all.

 

However, I do still want to try the mugwort for dreaming. So I put a small amount into a muslin satchel, and I plan to use it in my pillow tonight. I tried burning some in a bowl, but I really didn't like the smell.

[witchinplainsight]

Are there any recommended sellers in the UK? I'd like to try this herb. I have used sacred cacao before and loved it - gentle but powerful. Very vivid and intense.

[witchinplainsight]

Named for the moon I know this is an old post but the stuff I read about Mugwort said absolutely not for use in pregnancy. Just posting this in case anyone else reads this thread.

[Yex]

Yeah, mugwort during pregnancy is an incredibly bad idea; it was used in the past as an herbal abortifacient. I have heard of it being used at the end of a pregnancy to induce labor, though I can't say how safe that is. I hope everything worked out ok for NamedForTheMoon :/

 

***

 

It's funny that this thread was revived at this point in time, and that I just stumbled upon it now, because just an hour or two ago I was making a mugwort syrup. I basically followed the steps for making a simple syrup, but with mugwort tea (steeped for an hour) instead of regular water. I'm letting it cool overnight, and to-morrow I'll get some carbonated water and make soda with it. 

 

This also comes at a time that I've been working with Mugwort a lot, including in class in the folk magic intensive that I'm taking. She's long been an ally for me, though. It's true, as others have said, that her affects can be very subtle, but when they're not subtle - wow. Definitely great for trancework, dreams, etc, as others have mentioned. I usually take it as a tea these days, or burn some as incense, but I have in the past smoked it; when I first discovered it, at the age of 18, I used to smoke it combined with cannabis (which I used habitually in those days anyway), and the effects were pretty psychedelic. Now that intensity usually comes out only in dreams and trance. 

 

I'm planning on making some mugwort wine soon as well. Anyone have any advice on that? I was thinking of using port (just because I'm not crazy about most wine, but I enjoy port). Ratios, experiences, dosages, etc? 

Edited July 21, 2017 by Yex