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Title: The Green Witch’s Deck of Magical Herbalism
Created by: Ann Murphy-Hiscock
Art by: Brynn Wilcox
Publisher: Adams Media
Number of cards: 50
Card size: 5 x 3.5 in
Box size: 5.5 x 4 x 1.25 in approx
Guidebook pages: 80
Purchased or gifted?: review copy gifted by Simon & Schuster
Absolute favorite card: Pansy
Other favorites: (in order from most beloved): Parsley, Chive, Angelica, Patchouli, Carnation, Lilac, Mint, Valerian, Lupine
Notable detail: Spell or ritual on back of the cards
Season: Spring
Sabbat: Litha
Sign: Taurus
Element: Earth
Deck compliment: see note
Collective Pull: Calendula

Add to Your Altar

First Impressions

My first thought is that the deck is beautiful. The Green Witch’s Oracle, also by Ann Murphy-Hiscock, is one of my favorite decks. It’s absolutely stunning, really high quality and with the exception of a few things (which I think they actually fixed since I got it), it’s done incredibly well. In fact, I reviewed it three years ago now I believe and it’s still in the top five for most visited pages on my site. So clearly, many other people love it too.

Going back to this one, it's just as pretty but I will admit, I was a little disappointed. I’m not a big fan of having heavy text on the front or back of cards. It doesn’t specifically say that it’s an oracle so perhaps my disappointment is my own fault for assuming it would be an oracle? But having said that, it’s still a beautiful deck overall. So let’s take a deeper dive and see if this is one you’re going to add to your altar.

The Packaging

Just like the Green Witch’s Oracle, the packaging is beautiful. It feels heavy and luxe to start especially with the textural treatment on the name of the deck. It’s a rigid two piece box that has plant decoration around the sides of the bottom half of the box. Nothing printed on the inside but with the nice herbal design on the sides, I feel like I’m good with that.

The cards are also nice quality with a matte finish. They aren’t too thick or thin and have shuffled quite well so far with no damage to report. Sadly, the edges aren’t gilded. More and more, I find myself super disappointed when gilded edges aren’t included. Usually for more earthy decks, I feel like that’s ok but I’ve seen some really cool matte edges that would be perfect for a deck like this. A striking deep green or a lavender to match the outside would’ve been incredible.

The Guidebook

The guidebook is slim but that’s probably because most of the text is on the cards themselves. What you will find inside the guidebook includes:

An introduction
Using Herbs and Flowers in Your Craft (which is a pretty large section)
Some bonus herbal crafts
The cards and their corresponding rituals
Magikal properties reference chart

As I mentioned before, this isn’t a true oracle. It’s more like a deck of reference cards for various ways to work with herbs and flowers. They’re almost like altar cards and are a really pretty way to hold the energy of each plant while you work.

For each card entry, you get a brief overview of the plant and its background, magickal properties and healing uses. It’s just like opening up an herbal reference book.

Theme

The theme of this deck is herbalism for witches which is pretty apparent by the name. Ann specifically states in the introduction that this is meant to be a practical tool. One that you can bring along with you in your craft and have the information you need right at your fingertips. So in that way, this is like a deck of plant reference cards and meant to be used that way. You will also find many different ways to use the various herbs spread throughout the book so skip out on the guidebook. Just treat it like you would a traditional book rather than a meaning for an oracle.

The Artwork

The art is very pretty and done in a cottage core, earthy witch sort of way. The illustrations are simple, focusing on the plants themselves and just a banner to house the plant name - both common and latin.

It’s colorful but not overwhelmingly bright and appears to be done in watercolor. So it has a soft, almost desaturated quality about it. The art is also very true to the plants themselves so it isn’t abstract, making it pretty easy to identify your favorite herbs just by looking at them.

“As a green witch your hands are your most valuable tool. With your hands, you touch and take in information. With your hands, you dispense caring. ”

For a deck of altar cards, you really can’t ask for more, style wise. These definitely feel like they’ll be favorites among instagram posts. I know a lot of people say witchcraft isn’t an aesthetic and it isn’t. But for some people, me included, aesthetics really do matter. In fact for me, aesthetics ARE a part of my practice. I love to make beautiful things and I love to have beautiful things around me so having a deck of pretty herbs is in the win column in my book.

Reading With this Deck

So you know that this is not an oracle in the true sense so I’ve been very careful to work with it the way it’s been intended. I don’t like using it like an oracle but I do love using it to intuitively find a spell. I asked “which spell represents me best” and I was satisfied with my answer. I felt like it hit the right note.

Ready to get this deck?

Season, Sign, Element and Sabbat

I went with spring for the season but either spring or summer would be perfect quite frankly. Those are the growing seasons when you’ll see the fresh version of all these plants for the most part. I chose Taurus for the sign because that’s the sign I associate most with lushness and sensuality. Not sensual in a sexual way but in a tactile way. Being able to feel and smell and engage with plants in a way that forms a deep connection. Taurus is literally the sign of “stop and smell the roses” so I felt that energy applies to herbs too.

I chose Litha for the sabbat because it represents the growing season perfectly. When I look at this deck, I think more of a garden in the middle of its life versus say Lammas when the focus is on harvesting. To me, this is about being in the garden, tending to it, looking around and watching as it gets bigger and bigger. Litha is the epitome of that. Finally, I went with earth for the season because it’s an herbal deck and I mean, you can’t have a better choice than that.

Collective Pull

I drew Calendula for you. I’ve decided to share the spell for this card so that you can use the deck the way it's intended. I have found this deck is more effective as a source for spells than an oracle so I encourage you to work the spell if this draw resonates.

Please note, this spell is taken verbatim from the guidebook and is the sole intellectual property of Ann Murphy-Hiscock.

Calendula, or common marigold, is a daisylike flower. Used in connection with love and marriage in several cultures, calendula is also frequently used in skin care, healing and harnessing psychic abilities. Use this spell to encourage psychic dreams.

1 teaspoon dried calendula petals
1 whole dried bay leaf
½ teaspoon dried mugwort
Small bowl
Small citrine stone
Small drawstring pouch

Add herbs to bowl and blend together with your fingers. Add citrine.
Pour mixture into small drawstring pouch and close. Tie shut.
Put under your pillow before you go to sleep.

Who is this deck for?

All herbalist witches, stop what you’re doing and add this to the cart right now. If you work with herbs as a part of your practice, then you’ll want this deck. You may not get any new information if you’re a seasoned practitioner but just having a physical card to hold the energy of a plant, especially when that plant isn’t available is precious.

I also recommend this deck if you’re new to magickal herbalism. This is a great way to work with plants. In that case, I would suggest pulling a card intuitively, perhaps asking something like: