Stinksap

Stinksap
Potion ingredient information
Taken from	Mimbulus mimbletonia Certain trees
Properties	Able to heal creatures
Physical characteristics	Green in colour Foul odour

"Many students have tried to describe the distinct odour of Stinksap, but its foulness is difficult to articulate."

— Pomona Sprout

Stinksap was a magical green fluid that smelt like rancid manure and was contained in some plants like Mimbulus mimbletonia, as well as certain trees. The Mimbulus mimbletonia plant used it as a defensive mechanism when touched, while Stinksap itself could be used to nurse ill animals.

History

During the 16th century, a mishandling of a crop of Mimbulus mimbletonia caused a 'tsunami' of Stinksap to fill one of the corridors at Hogwarts. This corridor would later be known as the infamous Pungent Passage.

The Sunset Final Edition of The New York Ghost published on 1 December 1926 revealed that Stinksap extract was found in a best-selling toothpaste.

A pool of Stinksap

During the 1986–1987 school year, Stinksap was covered in third-year Herbology class. Students were reminded by Professor Pomona Sprout about wearing nose plugs before beginning the process. During the class, Jacob's sibling wondered if anyone died from smelling Stinksap. After the class, Professor Sprout asked the students to refrain from touching anything, and to bathe for at least ninety minutes to remove the stench. Jacob's sibling thought that Stinksap smelled like warm cheese wrapped in a sweaty gym sock.

"Liquid squirted from every boil on the plant, thick, stinking, dark-green jets of it; they hit the ceiling, the windows, and spattered Luna Lovegood’s magazine. Ginny, who had flung her arms up in front of her face just in time, merely looked as though she was wearing a slimy green hat, but Harry, whose hands had been busy preventing the escape of Trevor, received a face full. It smelled like rancid manure."

— The results of prodding a Mimbulus Mimbletonia plant

The Mimbulus Mibletonia plant, which contains Stinksap

On 1 September, 1995, Neville Longbottom showed his recently-acquired Mimbulus mimbletonia to his classmates on the Hogwarts Express. In order to demonstrate its defensive mechanism, Neville prodded the plant, which covered the whole compartment in Stinksap. Harry Potter was covered in it (with as much as a mouthful), Ginevra Weasley blocked herself in time, and Luna Lovegood's issue of The Quibbler was dirtied. Ginny used the Scouring Charm to clean up the mess.

In 1996, Aragog, leader of the Forbidden Forest Acromantula colony, fell ill. In an attempt to nurse the Acromantula back to health, Rubeus Hagrid extracted Stinksap from a cluster of trees found en route to Hogsmeade. Hagrid later administered the Stinksap, but was ultimately unable to heal the ailing Aragog, who later died.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game) (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film) (Mentioned only)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (film) (Mentioned in a newspaper)
• Harry Potter: The Character Vault (Mentioned only)
• Pottermore
• Wizarding World (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened
• Hogwarts Legacy (Mentioned only)