The Dreaming Belles

Bluebell Plant Wisdom, Magic, Myth and More.

Dear Hearts

If you sit still you can hear them ring. Their scented dreaming fills my being. They dance and I am sat on a stone sitting with them in the sun. The colour and feeling is … intense. Bluebells have a mystique all their own. Delicate dainty belles. We sit in the sun, They and I. In the sun among the birdsong that calls from left to right, back to front. It lifts and swings roundabout a cadence of patination. A deep purple blue dreaming upon the green.

Bluebell ACVesty

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In our verdant woods where dappled sunlight dances through the canopy, and a symphony of birdsong fills the air, Bluebell holds within a wealth of magic, folklore, myths, wisdom. Also known as the Wild Hyacinth or Wood Bell, Bluebell is a bulb native to the British Isles. Renowned for slender, arching stems adorned with nodding, bell-shaped blooms, casting their spell across the forest floor in spring, graceful bells sway gently in the breeze beckoning both humans and pollinators alike.

The Dancing Belles ACVesty

Native English Bluebells at our Forest Heart home in Wild Spirit Woods. This is how you identify a true native Bluebell: they are far more dainty and delicate than the Spanish Blue and hybrids. See how slender the stem is and how it bends over at the top. The stem at the top is the colour of the bells. Look how deep and dark the colour is. If you look at one closely you will see a vertical vein of blue running through each petal. The bell petals curl up on themselves as in this photo. These truly are a magical plant. Maybe one day you will come and see for yourself. Once used as a dumping ground this place is blooming.

According to legend, bluebells were believed to mark the entrance to fairy domains, their ethereal beauty serving as a gateway between the mortal world and the enchanted realm. It was said that those who dared to tread upon a carpet of bluebells risked being spirited away to the land of the fey, never to return.

Tipi where once sat piles of rubbish and brambles. Now this place blooms. ACVesty

The Bluebell’s Latin name ‘Hyacinthoides Non-Scripta’, refers to the ancient Apollo myth. (Paid Supporters/Fellow Journeyers I will send you my article about this and Hyacinths separately. You will also get a Bluebell film too. Plus I need to send you some other bits and pieces).

In Celtic mythology, the bluebell was associated with the realm of the dead, their vivid hue representing the transition between life and death. It was believed that bluebells rang out a mournful chime to guide departed souls to the afterlife. Later from a time when forests where often seen as forbidding places, people believed that the bells rang out to summon fairies to their gatherings, and unfortunately any human who heard a  bluebell ring would soon die. This seems like a fusion of the earlier Celtic with a later Christian overlay.

In Christian folklore, Bluebell was linked to the Virgin Mary, with their drooping petals symbolising her humility and purity. In some traditions, bluebells were regarded as symbols of gratitude, embodying the virtues of gentleness and humility. Folk remedies and charms were often crafted using bluebells, believed to bestow protection, luck, and blessings upon those who carried them

According to legend, Bluebell was said to ring out in celebration on the eve of May Day, heralding the arrival of spring and the renewal of life. Bluebell, it seems to me, is indeed a pathway. Not least heralding the arrival of Hawthorn, that enchanting gateway into the ‘Otherworld’. We shall be celebrating Hawthorn in our Gathering In The Green – May Kings and Queens next weekend at Wild Spirit Woods with tea ceremony, foraged treat and lots more besides. Currently the blossoms have not yet opened, still yet thousands of tiny snow white balls balanced upon the branches. Next weekend is also our open weekend and I think they will be out then to celebrate. (I have some cake baking to do this week! More info can be found on our Wild Spirit Woods FB page)

The bulbs are extremely toxic to human animals (other animals such as Badger do eat the bulbs. I have found places in the woods where they’ve been dug up). This toxicity to humans might be the origin of the belief that anyone who wanders into a ring of bluebells will fall under fairy enchantment and soon after die. Not all the Bluebell’s folklore is so dark. Some believed that by wearing a wreath made of the flowers, the wearer would be compelled to speak only truth.

Vision of Enchantment ACVesty

Their bulbs when cut open are very sticky and this sap was used for book binding with the added advantage of being poisonous to any insects tempted to nibble at the books. During the Elizabethan period, they were crushed to make starch for ruffs, collars and sleeves. Again, having the dual purpose of discouraging clothes moths.

Bluebells were also used to glue the flights on arrows. Despite their delicate appearance they are resistant to frost and they can grow in soils ranging from light and sandy to heavy clay. They are also an indicator of ancient woodland. Even if the trees are fairly young where you are they are a sign the land has been woodland for a long time.

I feel a real affinity for these beautiful belles. Hermaphrodites they sit in a central space of either/or. We don’t have to be so set in our ways and spaces. We tend to think of the transgender community as somehow a human invention, but it isn’t. (Did you know that at least 2% of all humans are born intersex? Nope neither did I until I did some research. Isn’t life interesting? Always something new to learn).

Bluebells sit in this world and the next. Deeply magical and ethereal, these plants sing to me of endurance and purpose, and paying attention to what draws us in life. What will you bind to your arrow of attention? The flight that gives direction to where your purpose will land. Follow them into the woods to meet Hawthorn.

Find Your Truth.

Wild Wishes and Blessings

Amanda Claire x