- "Three times a week they went out to the greenhouses behind the castle to study Herbology, with a dumpy little witch called Professor Sprout, where they learned how to take care of strange plants and fungi, and found out what they were used for."
- —Harry Potter's description[src]
Herbology is the study of magical and mundane plants and fungi, making it the wizarding equivalent to botany. Herbology is a core class and subject taught at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, in which students learn to care for and utilise plants, learn about their magical properties and what they are used for. Many plants provide ingredients for potions and medicine, while others have magical effects of their own right.
Herbert Beery was the professor of this subject at Hogwarts for many years prior 1955. After he retired, Pomona Sprout took over the post prior to 1991, and later Neville Longbottom by 2017.
Class information
Herbology is a mandatory class at Hogwarts for the first five years of a student's education. Students spend class time learning about the different varieties of magical plants that exist. The further into a student's education the more difficult and dangerous the plants become.
A Second year Herbology lesson
In the fifth year, when students take Ordinary Wizarding Level examinations, much of the year is spent working with a variety of more dangerous plants like the Fanged Geranium, as well as revisiting the past four years of lessons. As part of their Herbology O.W.L, students must sit a written exam, and then complete a practical exam, during which the students work with a wide selection of plants.[3]
Students who achieve a pass grade on their Herbology O.W.L. move on to the advanced class, where the plants become even more dangerous. At the end of their seventh year, students prepare for their N.E.W.T.s.
Pomona Sprout was the Herbology professor at Hogwarts in the 1990's; by 2017, however, she had either been replaced by, or was working alongside Neville Longbottom, who was likewise a professor. Neville was one of her students in the past, and a gifted herbologist.
Location and time
These classes are held in the grounds of Hogwarts, in the greenhouses. The greenhouses are located behind the castle. Classes are held in different greenhouses depending on the students' year, with more advanced and dangerous plants typically reserved for O.W.L. or N.E.W.T.-level study.
Lesson times
| Year | Day | Period |
|---|---|---|
| First | Wednesday | second |
| Second | Monday | |
| Tuesday | third | |
| Wednesday | first | |
| Thursday | third | |
| Third | Wednesday | afternoon |
| Fourth | Monday | morning |
| Fifth | Thuesday | sixth |
| Wednesday | forth/fifth | |
| Sixth | Tuesday | unknown |
| Seventh | unknown |
Curriculum
First Year
- " […] one of the Bouncing Bulbs wriggled free from Harry's grip and smacked him hard in the face."
- —A first year lesson[src]
- Fire-Making Spell
- Venomous Tentacula (Not practically)
- Spiky Bush
- Bouncing Bulb
- Severing Charm
- Puffapods
- Moly
- Asphodel
- Dried Nettles
- Dittany
- Wormwood
- Mandrake Root
- Aconite
- Lumos Solem
- Devil's Snare
Second Year
- "Those are Spiky Bushes. You may cast Incendio on them but step back to avoid their needles."
- —Pomona Sprout[src]
Second year lesson the Mandrake root
- Severing Charm (Revision)
- Bowtruckles and how defeat them using Severing Charm.
- Spiky Bush (Revision)
- Venomous Tentacula (Not practicaly, Revision)
- Incendio Duo
- Slugs and how to defeat them using Incendio Duo.
- Puffapods (Revision)
- Mandrakes
- Fluxweed
- Leaping Toadstools
- Abyssinian Shrivelfigs
Third Year
- Severing Charm (Revision)
- Puffapods (Revision)
- Incendio Tria
Fourth Year
- Herbivicus
- Orchideous Jinx
- Fire-Making Spell (Revision)
- Learning the properties of Bubotuber pus and how to safely collect it.
- Gillyweed and its uses.
Fifth year O.W.L. revision
Fifth Year
- Fire-Making Spell (O.W.L. revision)
- Self-fertilizing Shrubs
- Screechsnap
- Chinese Chomping Cabbage
- Fanged Geranium
- Flutterby Bush
Sixth Year
Known equipment
- Dragon dung – used as fertiliser (Professor Sprout's fertiliser of preference).
- Dragon dung compost – used for planting.
- Dragon-hide gloves – worn when handling dangerous plants.
- Earmuffs – worn by students and the professor when repotting Mandrakes, so they could not harm students with their sound.
- Mooncalf dung – used as fertiliser, makes magical plants grow well.
- Wand - to cast Herbology-related spells, such as Diffindo or Incendio.
Known Professors
Add a photo to this galleryRequired textbooks
- Flesh-Eating Trees of the World (N.E.W.T.)
Known O.W.L.s
Media
 For more Harry Potter videos check out Wikia's video library |
Behind the scenes
- As revealed in Pottermore, J. K. Rowling had originally devised this class to be called "Herbalism".[4]
- Pottermore has a feature called "The highs, lows and health hazards of Herbology".[5]
Appearances
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (First appearance)
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film) (Mentioned only)
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film) (Mentioned only)
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (video game) (Mentioned only)
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film) (Mentioned only)
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (video game)
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Mentioned only)
- Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Book
- LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
- Harry Potter for Kinect
- Pottermore (Mentioned only)
- Harry Potter: The Character Vault
- Harry Potter: The Creature Vault
Notes and references
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 14 (Felix Felicis), page 283 - American edition
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 6 (Gilderoy Lockhart), page 72 - UK edition
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 31 (O.W.L.s)
- ↑ Writing by J.K. Rowling: "Hogwarts School Subjects" at Pottermore
- ↑ Pottermore - The highs, lows and health hazards of Herbology
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Professors: Herbert Beery · Pomona Sprout · Neville Longbottom | |||||
| Textbooks: Flesh-Eating Trees of the World · Goshawk's Guide to Herbology · Magical Water Plants of the Mediterranean · One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi · Winogrand's Wonderous Water Plants | |||||
| Hogwarts class: Herbology Award · Herbology Lesson Cup · Herbology Race Cup · Herbology Store | |||||
| Hogwarts greenhouses: One · Two · Three · Four · Five · Six · Seven · Professor's Office | |||||
| Herbologists: Herbert Beery · Miranda Goshawk · Elladora Ketteridge · Beaumont Marjoribanks · Nepali wizard · Phyllida Spore · Tilden Toots · Hadrian Whittle · Sir Winogrand · Selina Sapworthy | |||||
| Plants Studied: Bouncing Bulb · Bubotuber · Devil's Snare · Fire Seed Bush · Mandrake · Mimbulus Mimbletonia · Puffapod · Screechsnap · Self-fertilising shrub · Snargaluff · Spiky Bush · Spiky Prickly Plant · Umbrella Flower · Venomous Tentacula · Walking plant · Whomping Willow · Wild rice | |||||
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| The Eleven Schools: Beauxbatons · Castelobruxo · Durmstrang · Hogwarts · Ilvermorny · Koldovstoretz · Mahoutokoro · Uagadou | ||||
| Specialised schools: Academy of Broom Flying · Charm School · Euro-Glyph School of Extraordinary Languages · Merge School of Under-Water Spellage · Wizarding Academy of Dramatic Arts | ||||
| Examinations: First year exams · Second year exams · Third year exams · Fourth year exams · Ordinary Wizarding Level · Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Test | ||||
| Core classes: Astronomy · Charms · Defence Against the Dark Arts · Herbology · History of Magic · Potions · Transfiguration | ||||
| Elective classes: Alchemy · Arithmancy · Care of Magical Creatures · Divination · Muggle Studies · Study of Ancient Runes | ||||
| Extra-curricular classes: Apparition · Advanced Arithmancy Studies · Ancient Studies · Art · Flying · Frog Choir · Ghoul Studies · Hogwarts orchestra · Magical Theory · Muggle Art · Muggle Music · Music · Xylomancy | ||||
