Nettle

Nettle (Urtica dioica)
Common Names: Stinging Nettle, Devil's Leaf, Burn Hazel
Element: Fire
Planet: Mars
Associated Deities: Thor, Cernunnos, the Horned God, warrior deities

Magical Properties & Purposes
Nettle is a fiercely protective herb with a paradoxical nature - its sting delivers pain, yet it offers profound healing. A plant of resilience and strength, it is deeply connected to masculine energy, protection, and banishing magic.

- Protection & Banishing: Used in spells to ward off evil, break curses, and send back negative energy to its sender.
- Courage & Strength: Carried in amulets or brewed into tea before battles (physical or spiritual) to invoke bravery and endurance.
- Healing & Purification: Despite its sting, it promotes healing - used in teas and poultices to purify the blood and body.
- Justice & Retribution: Associated with righteous anger and karmic justice; used in hex-breaking and binding spells.
- Fertility & Vitality: In folk magic, nettle was believed to boost virility and masculine power when carried or consumed.

How to Use in Witchcraft
- Sprinkle dried nettle around the home to create a protective barrier.
- Brew into tea (always use dried or cooked leaves) for courage and vitality.
- Add to protection sachets alongside black salt and iron nails.
- Use in purification baths to cleanse away negativity (steep leaves in water first to remove sting).
- Burn as banishing incense mixed with rosemary and sulfur.

Nettle teaches that true power lies in transformation - what initially wounds can also heal, and what defends can also nourish.