Aspen

Includes:

Folk Names:
Scientific Names: Populus Tremula (Quaking Aspen)

Status:

Native Regions:
Naturalized Regions:
Invasive Regions:

Physical Description: Underside of the leaves are light silver, while the topside is a dark green (Quaking Aspen)

Scent Description:

Oil Product Description:
Scent Synergies:

Gardening:

Handling Concerns:
Growing Concerns:

Medicinal Uses: Easing cramps (Inkwright); Soothing Cuts and Bruises (Inkwright)

Compounds Known:
Concerns & Contraindications:

Culinary Uses:

Practical Uses:

Magical Uses: Improve Eloquence and mastery of languages (Inkwright); Messages from the Gods (Inkwright)

Additional Notes: divider

There are a variety of Aspen within the Populus family- including Poplar and Cottonwood- but the most common in European myth is the Quaking Aspen (Populus Tremula). The underside of the leaves are light silver while the topside is a dark green; its bark contains painkilling and antiinflammatory compounds that are useful in easing cramps when taken as a tea. As a poultice it can be soothing to cuts and bruises.

A recurring theme in old beliefs about the Aspen is that the Wind itself was the messenger of the Gods. Therefore the unique whispering sound of the wind through the Aspen leaves was, by proxy, the communication of the Gods. It was also believed that a person could master multiple languages, or improve eloquence, by placing an Aspen Leaf beneath the tongue.

'Folk Magic and Healing: An Unusual History of Everyday Plants' by Fez Inkwright