Aconitum napellus

Common Name: Monkshood

Family: Ranunculaceae

Genus of over 250 species

The name comes from the Greek ἀκόνιτον meaning 'without struggle'.

Perennial: Prefers places with dappled shade.

Location: Mountainous parts throughout Europe and the United States.

Moisture-retentive; prefers well-draining soil; meadow and woodland settings.

Once widespread, now only found in wild places or cultivated.

Appearance: Showy flowers on short-stemmed offshoots from a tall spear and can reach heights upwards of 7ft. The blooms may be white, yellow, pink or purple. The plant gets its name due to the blossom profile resembling a medieval monk's hood. Leaves have five jagged lobes and are deeply toothed. 

In the Garden: As all parts of the plant are poisonous caustion should be observed to never plant it near edibles. Handle with care.

Folk Names: Queen of poisons, aconite, wolf's bane, leopard's bane, women's bane, devil's helmet or blue rocket.  “Plant arsenic.” (name coined by ancient Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder)

Gender: Feminine

Planet: Saturn

Element: Water

Deity: Hekate

Powers: Protection, Invisibility, Deadly

Medieval Use: To poison wolves.

~Magical Connections~

Protection Sachets: especially against vampires and werewolves'.

Invisibility: Seeds wrapped in a lizard's skin and carried secretly.

Deadly Love: A long history with sorcerers & witches using monkshood in potions to create a lover's attraction.  Done in haste or without knowledge this love potion could turn deadly.

Flying Ointment: Mixed with belladonna, rubbed on the thighs would create the sensation of tingling, numbness and it induces hallucinations of flying. Absorbed through skin this poisonous high was a flirtation with death's embrace.

Deity: Aconite was discovered and used by Hekate, beloved goddess of Medea, a sorceress and niece of Circe, who describes her relationship with Hekate as "the goddess who abides in the shrine of my inner hearth – the one I revere most of all the gods." Medea used aconite in potions.

Warning: All 109 species of Aconitum contain the poison acotine.  Highest concentration is found in the root. Eating a leaf, blossom or root is not advised.  Avoid rubbing your eyes after handling the plant.

Symptoms: Acotine can be found in amounts as small as two to four grams of the root or green seedpods as this is the area of the plant where the poison is concentrated.  Symptoms begin as quickly as 10 minutes or up to 4 hours. Vomiting, alternating hot and cold with sweating, frothing, blurred vision and paralysis can ensue.  Death can be quick or agonizingly slow taking as long as one full day.

Homeopathy: The root is now only used for external use, for nerve-related pain, and in homeopathy. It paralyzes nerve centers. Sedative, a painkiller, and anti-fever treatment.

There is no antidote for poisoning.