HERB-501 Lessons

Year Five, Lesson One 
Preview of Dangerous and Difficult Plants

Introduction

It feels like it was only yesterday you were here for your first lesson, my young Hogwartsians! You’ve come a long way since then, and you are finally ready. This year will cover broad categories of dangerous plants and give you the tools to deal with them. As always, specific plants will have specific considerations, but with this background, you’ll at least have a fighting chance when dealing with these gruesome greens! You’ll need it if you plan to go on and continue your herbological studies at the N.E.W.T. level. Most of the plants we are covering this year are the more common kinds of hazardous vegetation. If you continue your studies, you will most certainly be touching on plants from these broad groups again. Even with magic, I don’t think I could fit all 613 carnivorous plant species into one lesson! Instead, consider this a primer, or the basics of each category.

Flying Towards O.W.L.s

I am sure you have already had your fill of O.W.L. talk in the rest of your classes, but I’m afraid you’ll have to sit through one more discussion. Don’t worry though, I’ll try to keep it brief! This year will challenge you in more ways than one, but it will also prepare you for your milestone exam.

This year will see you covering a multitude of dangerous plants that like the taste of Fifth Year fingers (and other body parts), are extremely poisonous, are actively on fire, and much, much more. No longer will classes be a jaunt through Greenhouse One interspersed with the occasional field trip. At this point in your studies, I am confident that you are prepared to face these dangers, but do not embark upon this year of Herbology lightly. There is no substitute for paying attention during lectures, utilizing common sense, and exercising necessary caution. Much of the time, I will be asking you to use your knowledge of these plants immediately after you have learned about them. It may seem a bit rushed, but there is limited time before your O.W.L.s, and you will need this information to succeed on your exams. With hard work, I know you will triumph.

Yes, in addition to the expected theory test, there will be an extensive practical portion on various herbological subjects. You will need to use the knowledge of plants that you have accumulated over the years, and there is quite a lot that we have covered. Do you remember how to repot plants? How do you plant and care for aquatic greens? What pH does moonflower prefer? Do you remember how to test the pH of soil? How can you change it? What precautions should you take when harvesting Puffapods? You could be asked to give information about these topics or to complete related tasks.

I tell you all this not to alarm you, but to give you the benefit of foresight. Knowing what you do now, you can better prepare yourself for your exams. There will be a selection of review assignments spread throughout the year to help you remember what you have learned and apply it. Additionally, remember that you are not alone! If there’s something that you just can’t understand or master, no matter how much you revise, the PAs and I are just a walk to the greenhouse -- or an owl -- away.

Let’s Get Down to Business...to Defeat...the O.W.L.s

But that’s enough tittering about tests. The O.W.L. will come when it will! For now, our job is to prepare for it as best we can! As you can see from the syllabus, we have quite the jam-packed schedule, flying from one type of dangerous plant to the next with barely a moment to catch our breath. We will be touching largely on W.H.I.P.S. plants, as I’m sure you can tell from the way the lesson topics are set up.

Year Five Syllabus

Defining Reactive Plants

Speaking of which, let’s move onto our topic for the day: reactive plants. This may well be the W.H.I.P.S. class that you find the most nebulous or confusing, and I’m not surprised! Unlike Class A: Odorous or Class E: Burning, the definition is not quite so clear. Obviously Class A plants produce something that can be inhaled and Class E plants are alight, but what is a reactive plant? Is it one that reacts magically or chemically in a potion? Is it one that reacts to its environment? Our first order of business is to clear up that confusion, and we will go over some incorrect assumptions to help solidify that definition.

Reactive plants are not plants that react in potions. After all, that’s exactly what a potion is supposed to do! Potions make something greater than simply combining ingredients and adding up their properties. They are more than the sum of their parts because of magical and chemical reactions. Even non-magical plants like lavender can be changed via magical reactions in a potion.

They are also not to be confused with interactive plants that demonstrate complex reactions to the world around them, which is a common misunderstanding. This interactivity is sentience (or semi-sentience). A Honking Daffodil squawks at nearby people, a Parrot Plant can communicate complex phrases, and a Quaking Aspen withdraws when strangers come near. Many magical plants with wildly different effects and capabilities do this (though as you will see, reactive plants do have a very wide range of uses and quirks). 

Instead, reactive plants are herbs that, while still alive, actively change their properties or appearance when presented with a certain stimulus. For example, Puffapods will sprout when they touch arable soil; their appearance changes. This is more common than the former -- properties changing -- but there are some examples of that as well in the many types of reactive plants. Now that we have definitions and introductions out of the way, we will spend the rest of the lesson examining a small sample of this class.

Gunpowder Gloriosa

The splendid red, purple, or occasionally black blooms of this plant are native to Africa, Asia, and Australia, but are only found in very specific locales because of their growing specifications. They require a soil pH of 7.0 to 8.5 and regular watering to keep the topsoil moist. Those things, however, are not the issue. The difficult part of finding a suitable home for this perennial herb is the amount of sunlight. This species of gloriosa needs a precise amount of sunlight, specifically “partial sun,” or three hours of sunlight. The time of day does not actually matter, as is usually the case with partial sun or partial shade distinctions. However, if this plant receives even a minute more sun, the plant explodes. 

Quite the picky plant, no? Because of this, Gloriosa ballistica has a well deserved reputation as both a dangerous and difficult plant. Though the explosions only occur when the flower is in bloom, the resulting damage is extreme, shredding most of the plant to bits and uprooting what is left (if anything). Additionally, if you happen to be too near the plant, or holding it at the wrong time, the blast is powerful enough to knock a full grown adult off their feet and potentially singe their skin. 

Surprisingly, this plant is not endangered in the wild, despite its very specific growing needs. However, one complication of the flower’s volatile tendencies is that herbologists are still unsure of the maximum height to which the plant can grow. Once a plant grows too high or its blooms grow just tall enough to no longer be under the shade of other plants, kaboom! 

The main issues arise when attempting to cultivate it. In greenhouses, public or private plots, the plant is almost always kept with a fine tuned Darkening Charm applied. However, there is a trade off. Since the plant cannot get even sixty seconds more than three hours of light, the charm must be cast in a very precise manner. And because of the changing hours of sunrise and sunset, it is best practice to use the Darkening Charm to only allow in afternoon light during specific, unchanging hours. To offset this, many herbologists err on the side of caution, not daring to cut it too close to three hours, which causes the Gunpowder Gloriosa to suffer from getting too little light. Its blooms are not as spectacular, its potency is lower, and it is more susceptible to death via a number of pests. Still, many people consider this a fair compromise! Other methods that are undertaken to avoid damage are placing the flowers away from flammable or delicate objects (or anything at all, in some cases), being quick with the Shield Charm, wearing Shield Cloaks or Shield Gloves, or having good reflexes and something to duck behind. If the worst is to happen, having an assortment of Bruise Removal Paste and Burn-Healing Paste on hand will do the trick. And, as I mentioned in your very first year at Hogwarts, having a friend or classmate with you never hurts. 

The plant still retains its effects after being plucked, though the efficacy drops off significantly for dried plants. Proper precautions should still be taken when storing by keeping live specimens under a Darkening Charm as necessary and dried ones in dark vials or other darkened containers. In terms of uses, the Gunpowder Gloriosa fills a niche and is widely used in explosive brews and preparations of all kinds. However, its roots have been used to tone specific muscle groups and have also been found to have therapeutic uses. The plant has also been used to relieve fevers, but has the rather unwanted side-effect of increasing the imbiber’s volume uncontrollably, causing them to yell thunderously for a period of a few days to a week. When storing, steer clear of vials with Unbreakable Charms, as this plant is prone to accidental and sudden explosions (though much less so) even once plucked.

Shatterfern

Growing in the shady forests of Africa and India, Shatterferns are certainly less dangerous than their ballistic brethren in this class. However, they are no less difficult to cultivate. Their growing requirements aren’t terribly difficult: they need full shade, frequent watering to keep topsoil moist, and an ideal pH of 4.5 to 6.5. The main issue is that the plants fall apart at the touch of any human or creature and will not grow back. It is only the area that was touched that suffers, rather than every single frond of the plant, fortunately. It was originally thought that the plant was just incredibly fragile, but torrential downpours of rain or even rockfall have a startling lack of effect on it. These vivid green, flowerless ferns can grow up to ten feet tall in the wild, though similar to the Gunpowder Gloriosa, its height is often restricted by its own magical properties. 

Ptisana fracturea is a plant grown only by very patient and precise people because of this, as caring for it without touching it takes some work. It still needs pruning, watering, repotting, and the like, but even dragonhide gloves do not solve the problem. The solution typically requires a combination of the Levitation Charm and the Severing Charm to successfully avoid touching it. Other care can sometimes include fertilization, but dragon dung has been found to be too much for damaged and weak plants. 

The plant is well worth the trouble, though. It is used widely in bone-regrowth potions. Also, as one might expect, it is the main ingredient in the Shatterfern Potion, which is applied to buildings and other items to help with demolition and destruction. There is also some evidence that points to possible uses in defensive ward combinations, but this is far too understudied to be clear at the present time.

Morphanous Cactus

Finally, we come to the last plant in our array of oddities today. The Morphanous Cactus was originally found only in the deserts of South America, but for reasons you will understand soon, is now found all over the world in desert climates. This cactus’ claim to fame -- and its Class F: Reactive status -- is that whenever the plant gets wet, it changes form. Yes, I can see many puzzled looks from you, and you’re right. This makes for a very inconvenient plant to grow in a greenhouse! But before we talk about how that’s possible, I’ll need to discuss the plant’s origin and details a bit more. 

There does not appear to be any rhyme or reason as to what the plant changes into next. It may become another cactus or plant that also thrives in the desert, but it may just as likely turn into a plant that is completely inappropriate to the climate, and does not distinguish between magical and non-magical plants in its transformations. Fortunately, the perennial’s outward transformation does not coincide with any internal changes to the plant. It still has the same requirements: lots of sun -- six hours or more -- very little water, and sandy soil with a pH of 8.0 to 9.0. 

However, because each time the plant gets wet it changes form, Morphanous Cacti are very hard to identify. This is also the reason that Echinopsis mutatio has spread so far around the planet. Botanists, herbologists, explorers, and collectors, magical and Muggle alike, have all taken samples of this plant and unknowingly brought them back to their home lands, typically because it was such an oddity to see a beautiful rose (or some other out-of-place herb) amidst a sea of sand. However, the specimens obviously behaved oddly and not like the apparent plant should. Over time, a number of herbologists noted that this may be some sort of magical plant, but none were able to put the pieces together until Winifred Wikkeling, who is credited for this plant’s discovery in 1564. 

Obviously, no one is quite sure what the plant naturally looks like, as even a cactus requires some water and no one has been able to successfully cultivate a seed to maturity without any water. However, there are some researchers that are trying new methods of cultivation and hope to someday uncover the prickly plant’s form, as most are quite sure it is a cactus, or at least a succulent. To care for the plant, be sure to follow the plant’s requirements, and do not be alarmed by the change in appearance. Some herbologists label the plant or create some other sort of marker so they are able to remember from day to day and year to year what the plant is. 

As far as uses go, when eaten raw, the Morphanous Cactus produces prickly spines all over the body for a brief period of time. If that’s not appealing to you, it can also be used in a potion to aid in retaining water and warding off dehydration and is very effective in potions to do with transformations. There does not seem to be any overlap in the plant’s appearance and its properties, so this is the only case in which a completely poisonous looking plant can be eaten safely, but I wouldn’t gamble unless you’re sure!

Conclusion

That wraps up our discussion for this week. Normally, there would also be a portion on tips, tricks, potions, spells, gear, and/or dodging maneuvers to help you safely care for and interact with the plants of the week, but we have started out with a less dangerous group and have focused more on the “difficult” side of things. Unfortunately, like I mentioned, we can’t hope to cover every plant in the reactive class, no matter how much I’d like to chat with you about them ‘till the sun goes down. These are some of the most common and representative plants of this class, and I am confident that from these three you will get a good handle on what it’s like to deal with a reactive plant. If you have an itch to learn more about plants like Camoflower, Forget-Me-Moss, and Zassane, there is always the library, or you are welcome to come chat with me about all plant-related topics!

For now, you have a practical assignment in which you will interact with all three plants we have covered today in addition to your normal homework. There are also two optional assignments: one which will be the first of your O.W.L. review assignments and another regarding the elusive form of the Morphanous Cactus. Next time, we’ll be back together to talk about Class C plants, where you may have expected us to start. If you have goggles for Potions, be sure to bring those with you and meet me in Greenhouse Five!

Original lesson written by Professor Venita Wessex

Image credits here, here, here, here, and here

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