Interesting facts

The name Hypericum is thought to derive from the fact that you can see an image through the translucent glandular pores on the leaves (Greek hyper = over, ericos = image).

There are numerous legends attached to St. John's wort. According to one it originates from the blood of John the Baptist, according to another St. John the Evangelist is said to have gathered the plant drenched in the Saviour's blood from beneath the cross. The naming of the plant St. John's wort was supported particularly by the fact that the Knights of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, whose patron saint is John the Baptist, already used the plant for treatment of wounds at the time of the Crusades.

In his anger about the extraordinary healing powers of the plant the devil is said to have attacked it with a needle and perforated it thousands of times. This legend is supported by the numerous oil glands on the leaves which appear as black spots and look like pinpricks when the leaves are held up to the light.

The red juice which emerges when the flowers are crushed was interpreted by the Germanic tribes as the blood of the sun god Baldur who sacrificed himself to the earth every year at the time of the summer solstice.

St. John's wort, one of the magical plant beings of the summer solstice, devotes itself to the sun like no other plant. It is said to have the greatest healing powers at the Feast of St. John (24 June), three days after midsummer night, when it is at the height of its bloom and is imbued with the full power of the summer sun. At this time the light has reached its climax and the sun joins in matrimony with the earth. Since time immemorial people have honoured this day of union between the light and the earth, between spirit and matter, with great feasts. A remnant of this tradition can be seen today in the bonfires lit on midsummer's night.

On account of its ability to drive away demons and evil spirits St. John's wort was also called "fuga daemonum" and hung on doors and windows of houses and stables to keep away storms and evil spells.

Incidentally, a decoction of St. John's wort can be used for dying textiles. It produces a yellow to greenish-yellow colour.