I love fairy tales and myths heard around the campfire and found in the pages of dusty books. From time to time such tales feature information about herbs; their medicinal uses, their origin stories, their more mystical properties too. Even the Lord of the Rings trilogy discusses herb lore on occasion. Aragorn heals more than one person with his knowledge of plants, remembered in verse and gathered from the fields.
I wanted to create a space for such lore and decided to borrow the name directly from Middle Earth. So, I present to you the new community here on Hive ~ Herb Lore.
A few days ago I published an herbal profile about Hawthorn berries an how I use them in herbal medicine. If you missed video, you can catch up here:
At the start of the video I mentioned that I had heard about the folklore of hawthorn long before getting to know the tree in person. Today, I want to share a bit from the books I have and what tales they contain about this tree.
First, let us begin with the Celtic Tree Calendar. If you haven't come across this system before here is a summary: much like the western zodiac this system divides the year into segments. While the western zodiac is divided into 12 segments each ruled by a star sign, this calendar is divided into 13, each under the influence of a specific tree or plant. Below I have included a page from my own copy of "Celtic Tree Magic" by Elizabeth Pepper (published by The Witches' Almanac) so you can see which is your own tree by picking out your birthday from the list below.
For each tree or plant there is a couple of pages of associated folklore too. And while anyone who was born between May 13th and June 9th might find more significance with the words shared under Hawthorn, this tree's folklore goes beyond the Celtic Tree Calendar, as it is also a medicinal, healing herb.
Above all else Hawthorn is very much associated with the changing of seasons. The flowers bloom at the very start of spring and the berries mark the transition into fall. The tree itself is very often associated with witches and with fairies. Some folklore states that you know you are approaching the home of a good witch if there is hawthorn growing in the hedgerow. Other folklore suggests that any witch - beneficial or baneful - is warded off by the presence of this tree.
And then there are tales of fairies. It is said that the Fae gather around this tree during significant moments of the year like Beltain and Halloween ~ those most potent times of transition and enchantment. I can tell you for certain that I have always been very attracted to this tree. I love the heart-healing medicine it provides and have been cured of all kinds of ailments. My cats love to hang out under the hawthorn tree that grows in the forest. And birds of all kinds have benefited from the sweet, red berries.
Once, I even had a mystical experience with Hawthorn as I walked by, contemplating my future and being a bit pessimistic. Hawthorn sternly shook me out of my downer attitude. That, however, is a story for another day!
Thanks so much for joining me in my newest endeavor here on Hive. Stay tuned because from now on I am planning a weekly publication here in HerbLore called "Folklore Friday".