I joined the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids in November 2022 and began my Ovate journey in July 2025. I’m a biologist, and I feel that my knowledge of science deepens my spiritual relationship with nature, so I wanted to share a bit of that in this blog. I also wanted to make a resource regarding plants in the Southeast US, to fill in some of the gaps left by other druidic resources on plants of the UK and Northeast US.
When I was an undergrad over two decades ago, I did an independent study in an Arabidopsis lab. Lab strains of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana go through a very specific life cycle, in which they make a predictable number of rosette leaves close to the soil, then rapidly grow their stem to be about 8” tall, after which they flower, go to seed, and die. We would often germinate the seeds on agar in Petri dishes. Well, I once found a Petri dish forgotten at the back of the growth cabinet. In that tiny space, a single plant had short-circuited most of its developmental programming in order to make a single flower. It was a big moment that made me realize that plants behave intelligently; this plant knew that its resources were very limited and it knew that it should put everything into its only chance at reproduction. Seeing plants as dynamic beings in that way simultaneously sparked both a scientific and spiritual interest in them.
While I occasionally present information that I have found about human uses of plants, I must emphasize that this blog is not intended as medical advice and should not be used to diagnose, prevent, or treat any disease. Always consult a medical professional before using any herbal medicine. There are many poisonous plants out there, and you should always consult multiple trustworthy sources before ingesting any plant or plant product, in addition to being absolutely certain of the plant ID. Apps that use AI are very helpful for making a first guess at the identity of a plant, but I always cross-check by then looking the species up on the Florida Plant Atlas or a similar site and seeing if the photos really look like my plant of interest.
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