The term bane was originally used to refer to certain types of plant. In the Middle Ages

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

, a number of plant

Plant

Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...

s of the genus Aconitum

Aconitum

Aconitum , known as aconite, monkshood, wolfsbane, leopard's bane, women's bane, Devil's helmet or blue rocket, is a genus of over 250 species of flowering plants belonging to the buttercup family .-Overview:These herbaceous perennial plants are chiefly natives of the mountainous parts of the...

 were thought to have poison

Poison

In the context of biology, poisons are substances that can cause disturbances to organisms, usually by chemical reaction or other activity on the molecular scale, when a sufficient quantity is absorbed by an organism....

ous or prophylactic qualities, which would have dire consequences (Henbane) or liminal ones, like "Wolfsbane" or "Aconite." Aconite is thoroughly poisonous, but no one would bait a wolf-trap with it. So its qualities as a "bane" must be protective, for the wolf is more dangerous than a mere ravening carnivore.

Different Types of Bane

Leopard's Bane: also known as the (Little Leo) and is part of the Doronicum family as its species is the Orientale. In this class of Bane, it has the height of 12-18in and spacing of about 9-12in. The danger is all parts of the plant are poisonous if ingested. This plant requires careful sun placement and is not to be over watered.

Dog Bane: also known as the (Plearanthus Orantus) and is in the Lamiaceae and its category is Perennials. Has a height of about 24-36in and spacing of about 36-48in. The care for this plant is full sun exposure and not to be over watered. Dog bane has a bloom time of late summer, early fall to mid-fall and a bloom color of light blue, violet, or lavender.

Australian Leopard's Bane: in the Doronicum Austroacum family. Has a height of 24-36 and spacing of 18-24. Requires full sun exposure to partial shade. Has a bloom color of bright yellow and bloom time of late spring to early summer. This plant to not be over watered. The propagation for this plant would be division of rhizomes, tubers, corns, or the bulbs including the off position of the seeds. :)

Many medieval Europeans believed that they could become werewolves

Werewolf

A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...

. Aconite was the toxic

Toxin

A toxin is a poisonous substance produced within living cells or organisms; man-made substances created by artificial processes are thus excluded...

 entheogen

Entheogen

An entheogen , in the strict sense, is a psychoactive substance used in a religious, shamanic, or spiritual context. Historically, entheogens were mostly derived from plant sources and have been used in a variety of traditional religious contexts...

 that could keep the dire transformation from happening. At a later date, milder poisoning was thought to trouble sheep in the U.S.

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 southeast if they strayed into woodland and nibbled Kalmis latifolia.