A - D
Abyssinian Shrivelfig
Location: Eastern Africa
Description: Abyssinian Shrivelfigs come from Abyssinia (now known as Ethiopia), where they have adapted to cope with the very dry and arid environment. Their stalks are very shrivelled and have few leaves to prevent water loss. At the end of their extensive roots they have small feet, which allows the plant to dig deeper into the earth when it gets too dry, searching for underwater streams. Doing so usually involves dragging the entire plant underground, though Muggles who spot this unusual activity often blame this on burrowing rodents dragging them down. The figs that they produce can be peeled and used in potion making. The plants themselves can also shrink in size whenever threatened. One unfortunate wizard cast a Shrinking Spell on himself so he could study the Shrivelfig more closely, but was stepped on by a passing elephant.
AconiteLocation: Throughout Europe and Asia
Description: Aconite is a plant that Muggles have known about for centuries, yet has magical properties they do not realise – or, at least, they do not believe in. It is a poisonous plant and will kill anyone who is foolish enough to eat it, and is commonly used in potion making. Since aconite is a common flower related to the buttercup, it is unsurprising that there are many potions that require the addition of aconite because it can be easily obtained. Aconite is also known as monkshood (because the shape of the flower resembles a monk's cowl) and wolfsbane. This is because any werewolf who smells (or, of course, eats) aconite in its transformed state will be killed at once. Muggles 'know' about this, but consider it to be a myth since they don't believe in werewolves. However, there is also a Muggle myth whereby any person who eats aconite will be transformed into a werewolf, which is nonsense of course – it will only kill you. The only way of becoming a werewolf is being bitten by a transformed werewolf.
Alihotsy
Location: Northern Europe and America
Description: Alihotsy is an odd, flying plant that originated in Europe. However, since it can rotate its leaves very fast to enable it to remain airborne, it long ago travelled across the Atlantic Ocean and colonised North America as well. Without its leaves, it cannot fly, and since flying is the Alihotsy's main method of escaping predators and finding other plants to reproduce with, the leaves are heavily protected. They are covered in an slimy substance that is horrible to taste. Most animals can taste the leaves and leave them well alone in the future. However, wolves are the exception; despite the fact they are carnivores, they enjoy some Alihotsy leaves now and then, but the magical properties of the leaves cause the wolves to go mad for a few days, which cause the rabid, crazed wolf reports that sometimes appear in North America and Europe. If a human eats the leaves of the Alihotsy plant, they become hysteric for several weeks. Only the fluid produced by a Glumbumble can reverse the effect of the Alihotsy leaves.
Asphodel
Location: Throughout Europe
Description: Asphodel is a plant known to Muggles, but they are unaware of the magical properties it has. Asphodel causes Muggles to hallucinate and not see magical things that are there. For example, if a winged horse were standing next to a clump of Asphodel, the Muggle would not see it. This has prompted many wizards and wizards who keep winged horses or other magical pets to grow Asphodel in their gardens to prevent Muggles from seeing them – but, of course, the larger the thing that needs to remain unseen, the more Asphodel needed, and preferable mature Asphodel at that.
Muggles believe that Asphodel filled the plains of Hades, a myth probably brought on by the fact that wizards use Asphodel to brew the Draught of the Living Death. They also believed it was the favourite food of the dead and planted it in graveyards. During medieval times, when witch and wizard persecution was at its highest, magical folk would often meet in graveyards to discuss matters, for they knew the Asphodel that the Muggles had planted there would prevent them from being seen.
Bouncing Bulb
Location: Asia, Europe and Africa
Description: The Bouncing Bulb, as its name suggests, starts off life as a bulb that bounces around everywhere. This enables it to cover long distances to find a suitable patch of soil with which to root. The Bouncing Bulb then grows a simple stalk and releases dozens more Bouncing Bulbs. They are extremely good at reproducing this way, and the only thing that stops the world from being overrun by the Bouncing Bulb plant is that the majority of the bulbs bounce off cliffs or into a herbivore's mouth. Sir Geoffrey Haddock (1745-1805) discovered the Bouncing Bulb, but died when one bounced into his mouth and choked him.
Bubotuber
Location: Throughout Asia
Description: The Bubotuber is an odd-looking plant that resembles a fat grey slug sticking vertically out of the ground. In fact, it took the Ministry of Magic some time in the early 1900s when its was discovered to decide whether the Bubotuber was a plant or an animal. Eventually, after months of trying to locate any form of animal anatomy and failing, it was declared a plant. The reason it hadn't been discovered for long was because for the majority of the year, the Bubotuber wriggles underground like a slug, and indeed, is often mistaken for one when unearthed by Muggles. The reason for this is not entirely clear, although Herbologists think it needs to keep moving to absorb nutrients through its thin skin because it doesn't have any discernable roots.
Bubotubers are covered in pus-filled protrusions. These act as a form of defence, for the pus is highly corrosive and will irritate the skin and mouth of anything that tries to eat it. It is harmful to the human skin, causing unsightly boils and rashes to appear where contact is made. However, as Sacharissa Tugwood discovered in 1932 as she was researching Beautifying Potions, a diluted form of Bubotuber pus can actually help remove boils and pimples, and was quick to add it to her potions. However, one batch of Beautifying Potions had pus that hadn't been diluted enough, and Sacharissa was forced to flee the country when an angry horde of boil-covered women appeared at her front door.
Bulbadox
Location: South Africa
Description: The Bulbadox is a small herb that grows in arid conditions in southern Africa. Little is known about it because no wizard had been able to study it; whenever it feels threatened, the Bulbadox releases spores that cause boils to break out on anyone nearby, and, if ingested, causes confusion and, in some cases, memory loss. A Bulbadox grew in the middle of an African school in 1975, and after everyone sprouted unsightly boils and mistakenly assumed the black plague had reappeared, everyone was forced to evacuate.
Chinese Chomping Cabbage
Location: China
Description: The Chinese Chomping Cabbage is believed to be the result of a wizard or witch getting an Engorging Spell wrong and causing the cabbages in question to grow teeth. They have now spread around China like wildfire, and although they are useful for eating anything insect that lands on them, they also enjoy nibbling the hands of any farmer or shopper who goes to pick them up. The Chinese Ministry of Magic has grown extremely tired of rushing out to cases where Muggles have reported being attacked by a seemingly innocent-looking vegetable since the culprit is almost always a Chinese Chomping Cabbage.
Devil's Snare
Location: South America
Description: The Devil's Snare is a dangerous plant with long creepers and snake-like tendrils that it uses to trap animal prey, slowly squeezing it and ingesting its fluids. Devils Snare detects the presence of prey when it is touched, and immediately sends out tendrils to trap it. The more the victim attempts to struggle, the faster the tendrils wrap round them to prevent them from escaping. Therefore, it is considered deadly by the wizarding community and are rarely kept as pets. However, some small specimens are sold by shady dealers, and the hapless wizard or witch who buys them thinks they are a harmless plant, not knowing their true nature until they wake up in the middle of the night with the Devil's Snare's tendrils wrapped around their neck, trying to strangle them.
Devil's Snare can be found in the depths of the Amazon rainforest in South America, where it lives in dark and damp conditions, and normally eats things such as capybaras and other medium-sized animals, but it won't shy away from capturing larger prey such as humans. Many Muggle explorers who have ventured into the Amazon jungle have never returned because they have been ensnared by Devil's Snare; other Muggles assume they got lost in the jungle. Indeed, it seems likely that no Muggle has ever seen a Devil's Snare and lived to tell the tale – the only way of repelling Devil's Snare is by using fire against it, and although wizards can easily conjure up fire, Muggles have a harder time doing so, especially early explorers. Wizards, however, only recently discovered the Devil's Snare, when they first ventured into the Amazon rainforest in the mid-1800s.
The Devil's Snare starts off life as a small and harmless-looking plant that hides unassumingly within the undergrowth. Even as youngsters, though, they still have adept tendrils that they use to capture small rodents. As they grow larger, their tendrils grow larger so they can capture larger prey. The largest Devil's Snare was many metres across and managed to eat its way through an entire village of Amazon natives. The Muggles, believing the mysterious predator to be a monster, tipped their spears with poison, but, of course, this had no effect on the Devil's Snare. Only one native survived the attack on the village, and Obliviators had to be called in to erase his memory.
Dittany
Location: Asia and Southern Europe
Description: Dittany is a flowering plant that is sometimes referred to as the 'Burning Bush' because of the oily and flammable substance it excretes; if it catches fire, it goes off in a flash. The most common reason for it catching fire is when a phoenix nearby catches fire and is reborn from the ashes; however, it can ignite itself, whenever necessary (usually to avoid being eaten), a fact most Muggles are unaware of. The oil that dittany produces is very magical; it can be used on a cut to prevent it from scarring.