Love and Money Jam

July is one of the sweetest times to enjoy your garden and strawberries are a harbinger of the good summertimes ahead. To make this lucky jam, get the following ingredients:

• 5 cups of strawberries
• 1 teaspoon unsalted butter
• 1-3/4 ounces) powdered fruit pectin
• 7 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 9 clean and sterilized 1-pint canning jars

Macerate the strawberries in a big bowl. In a large pot, melt the butter and pour in the crushed strawberries. Fold in the powdered pectin. Heat the mixture to a full boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Add in the sugar and bring again to a full rolling boil. Boil and stir for 1 more minute. Now, add in the chopped basil.

Remove the pot from heat and skim off any foam. Ladle the hot mixture into nine half-pint jars, leaving 1/4-inch at the top. Look for and remove any air bubbles. If you need to fill in, add in more hot jam mixture. Carefully wipe the jar rims, then seal the lids on the jars. Place jars into a canner with simmering water, ensuring that they are completely covered with water. Bring to a boil; process for 10 minutes. Remove jars and cool. Strawberries are widely regarded as an aphrodisiac and basil brings money to your house. Making this “Love and Money Jam” will be a great gift to everyone in your household and anyone who is served this jolliest of jams.

Go Forth and Be Fruitful!

Apple

This “one a day” beloved fruit is associated with the goddess Pomona and contains the powers of healing, love, and abundance. Samhain, the high holiday of the Wheel of the Year, is also called the "Feast of Apples" and is used on the Halloween altar during this festival. Cutting an apple in half and sharing the other with your beloved ensures the two of you will stay happy.

Banana

A bunch of bananas packs a magical punch with powers of abundance and fertility for both men and women. Anyone who gets married beneath a banana tree bower will have a lucky marriage. One caveat: never cut a banana, only break it apart. Otherwise, you’ll bring back luck to your household.

Blackberry

Blackberries are the medicine that pops up anywhere, offering a delightful snack and serious healing, love, and abundance. Both the vine and the berries can be used for money-bringing spells. Thorny blackberry vines are wonderful as protective wreaths for your home, and the plant vine and berry can be used for prosperity and money spells.

Grapes

Planting grapevines grants you abilities for money magic as well as gardening and farming. The ancient Romans painted pictures of grapes on the garden walls to ensure good harvest and fertility for women. For mental focus, eat some grapes, while magical spell workings for money are abetted greatly by placing a bowl of grapes on the altar.

Pear

It is believed this uniquely shaped fruit brings prosperity and a long life. Somewhat similarly to peaches, the pear creates powers of lust and love. Sharing with a partner, pears can be used to induce sexual arousal. Pear wood is also very good for magical wands.

Pineapple

While renowned as the symbol of hospitality, pineapple represents neighborliness, abundance, and chastity. Dried pineapple in a sachet added to bath water will bring great luck. The juice hinders lust when drunken; dried peel is great in money spells and mixtures.

Tomato

A reminder that the tomato is a fruit! An easy money spell is to place a fresh-off-the-vine tomato on the mantle every few days to bring prosperity. Eating tomatoes inspires love and they’re great to grow in your garden as an aid to ward off pests of all kinds!

The Wealth of Wildflowers

Pagans revere poppies for their money magic. If you have a yard, nearby meadow, or any strip of ground you can garden, buy poppy seeds and simply toss half of them all around in early spring. Soon, you will have a wealth of wildflowers. No doubt, you will be rewarded for years to come with the beauty and abundance of poppies for many years to come.

Gather together:

• One small plain paper envelope
• Remaining poppy seeds
• A pen

Place the rest of the poppy seeds in the envelope. Bless the envelope by chanting aloud:

    Poppy, gold like the sun,
    
    Thank you for the new fortune I’ve won.

    With these words, this spell is sealed. And so it is.

Now write the charm you have spoken on the envelope. Seal the envelope closed and place it in your wallet, behind your paper money. Your fortunes will begin to change as soon as the envelope is sealed.

Dandelion Root: Luck in the Moonlight

Grind this dried root and sleep; drink in direct moonlight.

The humble dandelion, abhorred by lawnkeepers, hides its might well. Dandelion root tea can call upon the spirit of anyone whose advice you might need. Simply place the brew on your nightstand and say the spirit's name seven times; he or she will visit your dreams and answer your questions. In Chaucer’s day, this method was used to find lost treasures.

Luck be quick, luck be kind, and, by lucky seven, good luck will be mine. Blessed be

Sowing Seeds of Positive Change In Your Life

Nature is the ultimate creator. At a nearby gardening store or hardware store, get an assortment of seed packets to plant newness into your life. If your thumb is not the greenest, try nasturtiums which are extremely hardy, grow quickly, and spread, beautifying any area. They re-seed themselves, which is a lovely bonus. Light the following candles:

• Green candle and peridot or jade for creativity, prosperity, and growth
• Orange candle and jasper or onyx for clear thinking and highest consciousness
• Blue candle and turquoise or celestine for serenity, kindness, and a happy heart
• White candle and quartz or limestone for purification and safety

Put the seeds under the soil with your fingers and tamp them down gently with your wand, the branch, which you should also stick in the ground at this time. Water your new moon garden and affirmative change will begin in your life that very day.

Daisy and Echinacea: Healing the Heart and Body

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This faithful flower’s name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon daeges eage, “day’s eye” since it closes in the evening. The daisy has been used in one of the oldest love charms. To know if your true love is returned, take a daisy and intone “He loves me, he loves me not” until the last petal is plucked and the answer will be revealed. This flower is not just a boon for romance, however. It is also useful in herbal medicine for aches, bruises, wounds, inflammation, and soothing eye baths. As a flower remedy, it is quite good to help with exhaustion and is a highly regarded remedy in homeopathy. Echinacea is a member of the daisy family that has become wildly popular as a healer for colds and as a powerful immune booster, increasing your T-cell count and fighting off illnesses both minor and major. Echinacea is an herb of abundance, attracting more prosperity, but it can be used in magic workings to amplify the power.

Basil Bliss

This sweet-tasting herb is excellent in savory dishes. Basil truly grows like a weed and you should cultivate it right on the kitchen windowsill so you can snip and add to your Italian-inspired dishes. Give your basil plants plenty of sun and lots of water, and you will reap a mighty bounty to share with the neighbors. Old wives and hedge witches claim basil protects your home while it brings prosperity and happiness to any gardener’s home. Basil helps steady the mind, brings happiness, love, peace, and money, and protects against insanity (what more can you want?). The benefits of this plant are as plentiful as the plant itself; it can be used in getting and attracting love, and on the highest vibrational level, abetting psychic abilities or even astral projection.