The witch spends the entire casting time in touch with the plant or animal that she wishes to enliven and transfers the spirit energy from the gem into the target. Once the cast is completed, the plant or animal awakens and gains sapience. If it's a plant, it also gains the ability to move by moving its roots, vines or similar. It also gains the ability to speak the witch's mother language.
The GM is responsible for creating stats and a personality for the enlivened creature. The stats should be appropriate for what it is. Once the week has passed, the enĺivened creature is released of its spell and is no longer bound to the witch. It can still choose to stay with the witch, depending on how it has been treated during the bonding week.