Plant Cunning Podcast

In this episode of the Plant Cunning Podcast, hosts Isaac & AC Hill talks with Sian Sibley—witch, author of Black Paths and Green Cathedrals, and founder of the Dragon Oak Coven in Wales—about building real relationships with plant and tree spirits, including mugwort as an initiator and yew as a teacher around death and continuity. Sian shares how to approach trees respectfully, how to recognize a clear “no,” and why taking plant material without permission can undermine magical work. They discuss key allies like hazel, apple, hawthorn (including timing Beltane by local hawthorn bloom), and elder’s seasonal “three faces,” plus practical astral/meditation safety and grounding. The conversation also critiques modern pagan and wellness habits that harm ecosystems—crystals, frankincense, wasteful candles, and commodified entheogens—calling for smaller, more local, less consumerist practice.

01:24 Meet Sian Sibley

01:54 Springtime Blackthorn

02:29 Finding the Plant Path

03:07 Mugwort Opens the Gate

06:06 Yew and Death Mysteries

08:53 Patience and Plant Consent

09:37 Blackthorn Says No

13:57 When Plants Reject You

14:37 Buttercup and Monks Hood

17:30 Who Is Charubel

19:54 Sigils and Personal Practice

22:55 Astral Safety Basics

26:33 Protective Tree Allies

27:41 Hazel, Apple, Elder, Hawthorn

28:20 Elder Medicine and Folklore

30:45 Elder Initiation Poem

32:22 Pruning and Asking Permission

34:37 Elder Tree Lore

35:41 Hazel Nuts Wisdom

36:29 Hawthorn Beltane Timing

39:51 Local Time Cycles

42:44 Circadian Clock Health

47:13 Rest, Boredom & Imagination

47:43 Eco-Spirituality Critique

48:55 The Ethics of Crystals and Frankinscence

57:21 Living Smaller Solutions

01:04:20 Closing Poem

01:06:06 Where To Find Sian

Get The Zodiac Garden Guide on Amazon (available in any country)

Book a Vedic astrology consultation with Isaac by emailing him at [email protected]

On the Plant Cunning Podcast, Isaac & AC Hill interview Alan Chapman (at Barbarous Words.com) —magician, mystic, and writer—about his path from chaos magic to teaching Magia, a Western tradition oriented around awakening. Chapman describes a deepening in 2013 following awakening in India (in Tiruvannamalai) that led to his book Magia and a shift toward a more “miraculous” view of realization beyond standard nonduality frameworks. They discuss delusion as mistaken identity, “silent knowing” as the impulse behind seeking, transmission and its seductions, the limits of maps versus the need for cosmology, and a gardening metaphor for traditions that avoids both perennial “mush” and rigid traditionalism. Chapman shares how he works with students through practices that let experiences disclose their nature, and he points to his site and retreats for further study.

01:29 Meeting Alan Chapman

02:45 Baptist's Head Era

05:17 Awakening Deepens 2013

13:12 What I Know Sure

17:29 Silent Knowing Faith

21:15 Gnosticism Labels Rejected

24:21 Traditions as Garden

27:42 Universals and Particulars

31:44 Fear and Running Away

37:37 Delusion and Trust Thread

44:24 Morality After Awakening

46:01 Ramana Self Inquiry Myth

47:09 Who Am I Inquiry

48:34 Transmission Explained

49:46 Seduction of Control

52:24 Guru Yoga and Institutions

54:43 Why Teachers Help

56:28 What We Really Seek

58:04 Entrainment and Dependency

01:00:17 Cautionary Guru Stories

01:04:42 Maps Versus Cosmology

01:06:07 Let It Disclose

01:07:12 Gardening the Path

01:13:36 Faith and Silent Knowing

01:19:13 Practice and Awakening

01:22:44 Enjoying the Garden

01:23:33 Extreme Awakening Chasing

01:24:06 Two Worlds One Heart

01:26:09 Farming Incarnation Metaphor

01:27:39 Transmission Life and Death

01:30:28 Minimal Tree Cosmology

01:32:35 Unbinding Practice Steps

01:34:41 Mounting Cosmology Stages

01:36:49 Journal Envy and Comparison

01:40:37 Dry Paths and Fireworks

01:48:25 Cosmological Binding Method

01:49:28 Unconditional States Test

01:58:29 Cutting Down the Tree

01:59:21 Resources Retreats Farewell

Get The Zodiac Garden Guide.

Sign up for Pam Montgomery's free class here: https://plantcunning--wakeuptonature.thrivecart.com/co-creative-partnership/699392e4e6629/In this episode of the Plant Cutting Podcast, Isaac & AC welcome back Gordon White of Rune Soup to discuss his life between his permaculture homestead in Tasmania and travel in South America, including training in Bolivia and Peru. Gordon shares updates on regenerating depleted soil, orchard yields, and plans for a first cider vintage, plus reflections on seasonal living. He describes Paraguay’s everyday herbal culture around tereré and fresh medicinal bundles, and recounts a powerful Amazonian dieta with the master plant teacher Piñón Blanco, including diagnostic Shipibo weavings and a peak mystical encounter that reframed ideas of unity, imagination, and reality. The conversation explores universals vs. local correspondences in magic, discernment amid modern “performative” scenes, and where magical culture may be headed.00:00 Welcome and Guest Tease00:36 Book and Consults Plug01:16 Pam Montgomery Gateway Herbs03:18 Gordon Returns to the Show03:54 Tasmania Farm and Travel Split07:04 Homestead Updates and Harvests08:25 Permaculture Wins and Cider Plan14:17 Why South America Calls17:15 Paraguay Mate and Herb Culture26:30 Dieta and Plant Spirit Rules27:56 Pinon Blanco God Encounter35:11 Weavings as Plant Signatures38:02 Ancestors Tolkien and the Real40:47 Same Truth Different Paths41:26 Ayahuasca Cosmic Medicine42:46 Universals Beyond Language46:21 Directions and Relationality50:21 Instagram and Right Relation53:05 Cunning Traditions Everywhere58:49 Magic After the Golden Age01:02:49 Beginner Discernment Online01:05:54 Cringe Initiation Story01:08:35 Fourth Turning Magic Depth01:11:27 Chaos Magic Reframed01:15:26 Next Wave in Magic01:19:38 Fallen World Cunningcraft01:23:21 Paraguay Lessons Letting Go01:26:00 Book Update and Farewell

Today the Plant Cunning Podcast features farmer, and magician Todd Elliot, author of The Cunning Farmer. In the interview, Elliot describes his path from nature-loving childhood in Philadelphia to homesteading and CSA vegetable farming in Kentucky, his interest in ethnobotany and plants like datura, and key influences in farming and esoteric practice. He explains his eclectic “cunning” approach, combining ancestors/underworld, land and nature spirits, celestial/astrological forces, and angelic magic, plus reiki-based energy healing for crops. We discuss lunar timing versus weather realities, agricultural talismans, offerings to land spirits, animal signs, the state of industrial agriculture, and where to find Elliot’s website and Substack.

00:00 Show and Book Updates

01:23 Meet Todd Elliot

02:48 Todd’s Plant Path Origins

05:11 Datura and Entheogenic Plants

09:09 Teachers and Influences

12:07 Cunning Farmer Identity

14:09 Land Spirits Awakening

18:28 Sacred Farming and Ritual

23:35 Corn Reverence and Monoculture

30:58 Worldview and Four Realms

33:44 Land Trauma and Ancestors

38:46 Reiki for Crops

42:47 Reiki for Seedlings

43:04 Moon Timing for Planting

43:43 Weather Versus Almanac

46:48 Eclipses and Weed Killing

47:57 Trees and Lunar Mansions

48:56 Talisman Success Stories

51:40 Offerings to Land Spirits

54:34 Animal Signs and Omens

57:24 Deer Pests and Cernunnos0

1:06:24 Advice for Cunning Farmers

01:12:21 Protection and Haunted Places

01:15:00 Ghosts and Deified Ancestors

01:17:58 Where to Find the Book

Today on the show we welcome herbal educator and longtime practitioner Betzy Bancroft—co-founder and teacher at the Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism, Sage Mountain neighbor, United Plant Savers advisory board member, and author of "The Herbal Pharmacy: The Science and Magic of Preparing and Administering Plant Medicine". We discuss distilling decades of teaching into a foundational medicine-making book designed for different learning styles. She shares her path from New Jersey to studying with David Winston, working at Herbalist & Alchemist, and being inspired by mentors including Rosemary Gladstar and William LeSassier. Betsy explains VCIH’s tuition-supported sliding-scale clinic and Zoom-based student mentoring with SOAP notes, safety, and formulation review, then covers formulation principles (triangle theory), taste in teas, extraction decisions (surface area, time, heat, solvent, agitation), vinegar/oxymels and constituent solubility, polyphenols and gene expression, subtle influences and intention in medicine making, and current plant allies like mushrooms, chaga, reishi, and self-heal, plus upcoming events and where to find her book.00:00 Meet Betzy Bancroft01:05 New Book Overview02:22 Teaching Superpowers04:03 How Betzy Learns06:53 Finding Herbalism08:47 Mentors and Lineage10:21 Founding VCIH Clinic13:49 Clinic Mentoring Process18:13 Formulation Triangle Theory21:59 Vinegar and Oxymels27:42 Polyphenols Flip Genes31:42 Extraction Tips Solubility35:11 Book Marketing And Website37:03 Subtle Energies In Medicine39:47 Astrology And Intention41:47 Tea Intention Experiments47:07 Learning Through Plant Time50:06 Mushroom Remedies And Chaga55:14 Self Heal Plant Profile01:00:28 Classes Events And Wrap Up

It's the spring 2026 “astrological New Year” episode of the Plant Cunning Podcast, with hosts AC and Isaac Hill, with resident forecaster, ZamboniFunk. Isaac shares his upcoming astrological gardening book The Zodiac Garden Guide (out April 4) and reading offerings—then review 2025 and the eclipse window’s intensity, including the Iran war escalation. Using the Aries ingress chart, we discuss Mercury retrograde stationing direct in Pisces conjunct the North Node and Mars, Sun conjunct Neptune and Saturn in Aries, and what this suggests about confused but forceful narratives, pro-war escalation, and trouble for the U.S. executive branch. We emphasize skepticism, asking better questions, managing information overload, and prioritizing nourishment, rest, and grounding practices like gardening. We also preview Uranus moving into Gemini as an acceleration of tech and AI, arguing for learning new “languages” while drawing on enduring ancient wisdom and choosing fewer battles.

00:00 Spring Equinox Welcome

00:38 Zodiac Garden Guide Update

01:38 Readings And Courses

02:38 Which Way To Wisdom

04:05 Springtime Setting The Scene

04:44 Looking Back On 2025

07:56 Eclipses And World Events

10:30 Astrology For Regular People

17:32 2026 Ingress Big Themes

17:58 Mercury Retrograde Narrative Fog

24:50 Chart Walkthrough Key Placements

30:08 Tyranny Escalation And Control

36:00 Jupiter Economy And Religiosity

43:01 Unplug Or Engage Strategically

46:49 Medicine For The Moment

47:49 Herbs For Burnout

49:35 Rest And Spirit Care

51:46 Acceleration And Uranus

54:26 Gardening As Medicine

57:57 Mercury Pisces Paradox

01:02:45 Unplugging From Opinions

01:08:42 Uranus Gemini Skills

01:10:38 Printing Press AI Lesson

01:23:52 Old Versus Ancient

01:29:13 Pick Your Battles

In this episode, AC & Isaac welcome natural healing practitioner and teacher Peter Jackson-Main to discuss Natural Healing, his background in the Dr. John Christopher lineage, founding The Natural Center in the UK, and his clinical approach using structured case-taking alongside tongue and pulse diagnosis and iridology. They focus on what detoxification is, why it matters in a toxic environment, and how he supports organ-by-organ elimination (bowel, kidney, liver, lymph), including a gentler polarity-based liver flush using apple juice, lemon, garlic, ginger, olive oil, and a dandelion-root detox tea, plus seasonal timing in spring and autumn. Peter contrasts herbs with supplements, emphasizes patient commitment in chronic illness, and shares views on fasting as spiritual and physical medicine. He previews his forthcoming book The Medicine of Plants on ecology, exchange with plants, and plant intelligence, and shares favorite allies like astragalus, burdock, nettle, artemisia, and horsetail.

00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:34 Guest Intro and Announcements

03:01 Defining Natural Healing

04:29 Origin Story and Training

08:33 Building the Natural Centre

10:25 Herbal Preparations and Teas

12:51 Clinical Intake and Intuition

20:56 Detox Basics and Rationale

23:58 Organ by Organ Detox Strategy

28:41 Liver Flush Protocol

34:55 Seasonal Detox and Herb Choices

36:16 Warming Detox Tea

37:25 Fasting Basics and Benefits

40:17 Fasting as Whole-Being Practice

41:17 Handling Chronic Illness Cases

46:01 Eclectic Herbal Lineage

47:50 Rethinking Research and Reality

51:45 Supplements Versus Living Herbs

55:00 Plant Allies and Local Substitutes

58:47 New Book The Medicine of Plants

01:04:44 Closing and Where to Find Him

Find out all about Olga and her Greece trips at Smugtown Mushrooms

AC and Isaac welcome returning guest Olga Tzogas of Smugtown Mushrooms, calling in from California where she’s teaching frequent classes, connecting with mushroom and herbal communities, and harvesting no-spray citrus for an east-coast fruit share. They discuss shifts in mushroom education interest, regional and international mushroom diversity tied to trees and rainfall, and favorite Greece finds like shaggy parasols and almond-scented wild Agaricus, plus simple grilling methods with olive oil, oregano, and lemon. Olga explains truffles—trees they associate with, how quickly they can be found with trained dogs, why prices are high, preservation challenges, and ways to use them. Olga shares details on her Greece trips in May and October (including truffle hunting, medicine making, hydrosols, dyes, and food), early bird timing, and mentions the upcoming New Moon Mycology Summit in September.

00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:33 Guest Intro and Teasers

01:50 Greece Trip Announcement

03:33 Olga in California

06:55 Teaching on the Road

08:27 Mushroom Trend Talk

10:09 Foraging Origins and Fungi Magic

11:48 California Mushroom Season

14:00 Mushrooms Around the World

18:49 Greece Mushroom Favorites

22:23 Citrus Share and Bitters

25:51 Peels Oxymels and Aronia

31:04 Sea Buckthorn and Ojas

36:16 Thorns Hawthorn and Cornelian Cherry

37:52 Wild Fruit and Wood

38:47 Truffles and Host Trees

39:46 Cultivating Truffles Fast

41:30 Training Truffle Dogs

43:24 Truffle Prices and Shelf Life

44:43 Preserving Truffle Aroma

47:09 Cooking With Truffles

50:13 Greece Foraging Trips

56:28 Trip Dates and Lodging

01:00:15 Workshops and Slow Travel

01:07:20 Why Greece Feels Free

01:12:28 New Moon Summit Update

01:16:35 Early Bird and Giving Back

01:18:39 Final Thanks and Farewell

Find Dana at The Druid's Garden: Spirit Journeys in Healing the Land, Permaculture, Sustainable Living, and Creative ArtsFind out more about the Plant Cunning Conference at Plant Cunning Conference – Save the date – July 24-26, 2026Book a Vedic astrology reading with Isaac by emailing him at [email protected]

AC and Isaac welcome back Dana O’Driscoll—Grand Archdruid of Ancient Order of Druids in America, co-director and founder of the Pennsylvania School of Herbalism, author, artist, and creator of the Druid’s Garden blog—to discuss her new book, "Eco Spirituality in the 21st Century," co-authored with Nate Summers. They talk about the book as a practical roadmap for difficult times, rooted in nature spirituality and community, and built around seven themes: reconnection, respect, rewilding, regeneration, resilience, re-enchantment, and revisioning. Dana explains how she and Nate collaborated (long conversations to develop the framework, then dividing chapters by strengths), how the book uses a Druid-inspired structure (Bard/ovate/druid as community/creative practice, nature-based practice, and cosmology/magical theory), and why storytelling and visioning are central as acts of magic that shape reality. The conversation explores animism and agency in the natural world, the role of gratitude and offerings in reciprocal relationships with land and plants, the need to pair magical work with practical action, and the importance of rebuilding local, in-person community through shared meals, fires, mutual aid, and tool shares as larger systems strain. Dana also shares details on upcoming events (Plant Cunning Conference July 24–26 in central New York; Hawthorn Botanical Gathering in June) and where to find her work, including the book via major booksellers, her site (thedruidsgarden.com), and the Pennsylvania School of Herbalism (paherbschool.com).

01:10 Conference and Support Updates

02:32 Seasonal Check In

03:20 Why This Book Now

08:01 Co Writing the Book

11:34 Meeting Nate and Shared Druidry

15:17 Seven Rs Framework

22:18 Storytelling as Magic

28:19 Agency Action and Enchantment

33:52 Stories Shape Reality

34:13 Deprogramming Cultural Beliefs

35:28 Seven Rs Roadmap

38:44 Enchantment Without Overload

42:25 Respect Through Animism

44:29 Offerings and Deep Gratitude

52:15 Reindigenizing Daily Life

54:09 Rebuilding Local Community

59:01 Herb School and Book Links

01:02:43 Final Thanks and Wrap

AC and Isaac welcome John Michael Greer back to the Plant Cunning Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on mundane astrology and the Saturn–Neptune conjunction at 0° Aries on February 20. Greer explains mundane astrology as astrology applied to world events, emphasizing traditional tools like ingress charts for solstices and equinoxes, eclipse charts, and great conjunctions, and describing astrology as an empirical craft built from long historical observation. The episode explores why 0° Aries functions as a zodiac “reset button,” why Saturn (form, limits, structure) combining with Neptune (dissolution, unity, imagination, delusion) suggests major shifts. They discuss competing ways of timing the Age of Aquarius, including the 2020 Jupiter–Saturn conjunction in Aquarius as a possible “dawn” marker, and critique utopian 1960s portrayals of Aquarius, noting traditional rulership by Saturn and the difficult, disruptive qualities associated with Uranus (and Rahu as co-ruler in Vedic astrology). Greer ties Uranus-in-Gemini cycles to U.S. history and “elite replacement” periods, framing current politics as another transition that may include bureaucratic contraction and social conflict without necessarily implying “the end of everything.” Additional themes include long-term decline versus sudden collapse, climate volatility, ice-sheet destabilization, karmic causality as “action and consequence” rather than retribution, and esoteric ideas like Dion Fortune’s “initiation of the nadir” as a potential collective turning point amid peak global population.

02:53 Mundane Astrology

101: The Oldest Branch of Astrology & How It Works

04:26 Tools of Mundane Astrology: Ingresses, Eclipses, and Great Conjunctions

06:29 Why 0° Aries Matters: The Zodiac ‘Reset Button’

08:27 Saturn Meets Neptune: Form vs Dissolution—and Why This One’s Unprecedented

11:50 Axial Age Echoes: Religion, Philosophy, and What Might Change Next

15:50 Age of Aquarius: Uranus Energy, Myths of Utopia, and Saturn’s Reality Check

21:07 Tech, AI, and Civilizational Fragility

26:25 When Did the Age of Aquarius Begin?

5:26 Wheels Within Wheels: Stacking Cycles and What We’ll Notice in Our Lifetimes

36:42 Historical Parallel: Early Democracy, and How Big Shifts Start Small

37:56 Athens’ Democratic Experiment & the Rise of a Cultural Powerhouse

38:36 Thales and the Birth of Philosophy: Reason Replaces Myth

39:34 Where the Next Breakthrough Comes From: Fringe Ideas That ‘Work’

41:07 Screens, AI, and a Return to Being Human (in a New Way)

42:46 The Star of Bethlehem, Magi as Magicians, and Modern ‘Messiah’ Speculation

44:37 Aquarius vs Pisces: Why We Can’t Imagine a Truly New Age

45:11 Reading Dead People: Ancient Epics as a Portal to Other Mindsets

46:20 Kali Yuga vs Satya Yuga: Are We in the Spiritual Winter?

48:43 26,000-Year Cycles, Ancient Dread, and ‘This Is as Bad as It Gets’

52:33 Saturn’s Lesson: Endure, Do Your Dharma, and Get to Work

54:34 Initiation of the Nadir: Hitting Rock Bottom and Rounding the Buoy

58:48 Uranus in Gemini & America’s Elite Replacement Cycles (Revolution–Civil War–WWII)

01:05:43 Mundane Astrology Methods: Updating Planetary Meanings for the Modern World

01:09:06 Mars vs Mercury Masculinity—and What a Future Dark Age Might Look Like

01:13:20 Post-Collapse Cities in ‘Star’s Reach’: A Byzantine-Style Future

01:14:06 What Determines the Shape of a Dark Age? Printing, Farming, and Resilient Tech

01:15:33 Amish & Appropriate Tech: Keeping Urban Life Alive After Collapse

01:18:30 Collapse as Slow ‘Ragged Decline’: Gas Prices, Frogs, and the Long Slide

01:21:48 Punctuated Shocks: Lockdowns, 9/11, and Climate Tipping Points

01:24:05 Astrology as a Tactical Tool: Daily Transits, Timing, and Better Decisions

01:29:29 Intuition, Past Lives, and Skill Carryover: From Mozart to Tarot

01:33:33 Karma Explained: Action, Consequences, and What Charts Can Reveal

01:37:03 Remedies & Magic: Planetary Charity, Talismans, and Natal Chart Mandalas