Petal Portents
Divination by flowers and plants is known as floromancy and botanomancy, respectively. No doubt you're familiar with the belief that finding a four-leaf clover signals good luck. But many other botanicals can provide insights into your future, too. One way to use these lovely oracles is to observe plants in their natural state.
According to those who practice this art, the first blossoming daffodil not only heralds spring, it also foretells financial improvement — and if you see it on a Friday, your prosperity will double. A myrtle plant blooming unexpectedly near your home portends joy and peace. A healthy growing wisteria speaks of sound friendships. And if you wonder when those friends will arrive for a visit, a geranium planted near your door will tell you. Watch it and when the head turns in a different direction, expect guests soon.
Divining by roses is called Phyllorhodomancy. To use this method, the questioner acquires three freshly cut roses that haven't begun to open yet and places them in a vase of water. Each rose represents a specific answer (yes, no, maybe). Whichever one lasts the longest represents the answer.
A more active approach to divination involves purposefully manipulating the plants. If you can float a candle on a freshly harvested holly leaf, prosperity is forthcoming. If a harvested ivy leaf stays green all night on New Year's Eve, the coming year will be healthy. Tossing flower petals on water and watching their movement is an effective kind of scrying (visioning the future with the help of an object or external source). Burning plant parts and observing the behavior of the fire is a form of pyromancy (divination by fire).
Another technique involves carefully preserving leaves and flowers and fashioning them into a set of runes or cards. Start with a good base medium (stones, wood, or sturdy art paper) and appropriate decoupage covering. Choose leaves or flowers from various plants and affix them to the base material. Each plant possesses a secret, symbolic meaning.
Plants appearing in dreams have special significance for green witches. Blossoming flowers imply fulfillment, hope, and the flowering of new skills (either magickal or mundane). Buttercups represent business success; carnations and roses speak of love; irises predict forthcoming communications from friends or loved ones; and primroses herald new friendships.
