Agnus Castus Products
This magnificent looking plant has mysterious origins and often thought to have many different and opposing qualities. Indigo Herbs brings you Agnus Castus Tincture and Agnus Castus Powder so that you might discover for yourself whether the legends are true regarding the herbal qualities of this small tree.
There are many historical references regarding Agnus Castus and its mythical effects with most regarding it to be a suppressant of the libido for both men and women. These concepts have mostly derived from the different names for this plant such as; Chasteberry, Monk's Pepper and Chaste Lamb Tree. In ancient Greece Agnus Castus was used during the period of Thesmophoria where the Goddess was worshipped by women whilst their husbands were out in the fields bringing in the harvest. During this period Greek women would line their bedding with the leaves and flowers of this small tree. It is often thought that the women practised this ritual to suppress their sexual desires while the men were away. It is more likely that Agnus Castus was thought to increase fertility and invite the powers of the Goddess into the bodies of women. The misconception might be because Dioscorides, author of De Materia Medica, noted that the smell of the plant was so pungent no man would be willing to sleep in a bed lined with Agnus Castus. Also the Classical Greek term for the plant is 'ágnos' which sounds like 'hagnós' which translates as 'chaste'. The Latin word 'agnus' which means 'lamb' also has been used to replace 'ágnos' and so it is quite conceivable that the early Christians associated this tree with innocence and chastity. Modern research suggests that because of the complex chemical make up of this plant then it might act as a suppressant and an enhancer of the libido in differing quantities.
Growing to a height of 1-5 meters and a member of the Vervain family, Agnus Castus grows in warm temperate climates and flowers in late summer. The fronds of flowers are purple and the hue of Lavender and having a pungent odour.
