Blackthorn

From Traditional Witchcraft Wiki Project

Blackthorn is a large shrub or a small tree of the genus Prunus, botanically Prunus spinosa. Its fruit is called the sloe, or in the Scots language, slaes.

The blackthorn is native to Europe, western Asia, and north Africa. The common name is derived from its dark bark and skin, and from the thorns or spines that it bears. In Ireland, a straight blackthorn stem is traditionally made into a walking stick named a Shillelagh. A Shillelagh (pronounced "shi-LAY-lee") is a wooden club or cudgel, typically made from a stout knotty stick with a large knob on the end

It is covered in white flowers in early spring, and is often the first flowering tree in the countryside in its native regions. It bears a fruit called the sloe, which is similar to a small damson or plum, suitable for preserves, but too tart to eat (unless deeply frozen, as it is practiced in Eastern Europe); in rural England so-called sloe gin is made from them, though this is not a true gin but a liqueur. In Navarra, Spain, patxaran is a popular liqueur made with sloes. Sloes can also be made into jams and if preserved in vinegar are similar in taste to Japanese umeboshi.

Tha name of Blackthorn in Ogham is Straif.

>== Blackthorn in Myth and Folklore ==

In Manx folklore it is said that if the Hawthorn and Blackthorn have many berries the ensuing winter is expected to be severe.[1]

Popular folklore in Ireland contends Blackthorn to provide protection against ghosts.Irish giants are said to carry Blackthorn shillelaghs.

Circa 1940 in Dittisham and Galmpton, Devon, the poet, Robert Graves, found that people feared a blackthorn walking stick was carried by suspected witches and if it was pointed at a pregnant woman she would miscarry. When Major Weir, covenantor and self-proclaimed witch was burned in Edinburg his blackthorn stick was burnt with him.

Blackthorn is linked to harm as a scratch from the thorns often leaves wounds that turn septic. Legends say that thorns were dipped in poison and used against enemies, thus becoming known as "the pin of slumber".

It is reputedly used as the wood to burn witches, as there was a belief that the devil himself pricked initiates on the fingers with thorns and at one point was deemed enough for a death sentence. Using Blackthorn for burning a witch was meant as a final insult.

It wasn't just witches who used Blackthorn to harm as a Blackthorn spine placed under the saddle of a rider was enough to make a horse unseat it's rider when the spine went into it's flesh - a way to get rid of an enemy or rival. Because of all the secrecy attached to these actions, Blackthorn became known as the "increaser and keeper of dark secrets".

It's blossom in the house is regarded as a portent of death, and in Germany blackthorns are said to grow where heathen blood has been spilt in battle.

Blackthorn crowns or garlands were used to wassail the apple trees and when mistletoe was woven into the garlands they were hung up to bring luck in the coming year.

"Blackthorn Winter" is a period of boreal weather following the coming into bloom of the blackthorn, injuring young plants with winds and low temperatures during the days of the "Ice Saints" or "Frost Saints" : Mamertus, Pancras, Servatius and Boniface.

1 Hawthorn and Blackthorn
2 Blackthorn Magical Properties
3 Blackthorn Medicinal Uses
4 Traditional Tools made from Blackthorn
5 References

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Hawthorn and Blackthorn

Christian myths state that either blackthorn or hawthorn made The Crown of Thorns. There is supposed to be a rivalry between the trees: it is said that a hawthorn would destroy a blackthorn growing near it.

In Herefordshire and Worcestershire they used to use blackthorn or sometimes hawthorn in a burning charm on New Year's morning. A globe of the twigs would be burned in the furrows and the ashes scattered over the earliest wheat and people would say "the devil has been driven from the fields". The women would then make a new globe. This would ensure the farm's fertility and fortune.

When Blackthorn was used in the May Day celebrations, it topped the maypole entwined in a Hawthorn garland and was called the "Mother of Woods".

In some Druidic Traditions Blackthorn and Hawthorn being sister trees represent the dark half and the light half of the year. Blackthorn is the tree of Samhain, where as Hawthorn is the tree of Beltain. [1]

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Blackthorn Magical Properties

The most powerful times of the year to use Blackthorn for purification and banishing are Imbolc and Samhain. At Imbolc, Blackthorn is one of the first trees to flower, thus, it aids the ushering in of Spring.

In the Ogham, Blackthorn, called Straif, rules the mystical three day period of Samhain, where it marks the “parting of the veils between the physical and the spiritual.” Blackthorn can be used to create safe boundaries from which to communicate with the dead, and protection from evil spirits.

At Samhain, when it’s berries ripen in the Winter, the Morrigan and Dagda, are said to mate.

The wintry fruiting Blackthorn tree is associated with Underworld Initiations. The Cailleach announces Winter with a bang of her ancient Blackthorn stang.

Blackthorn is also used to celebrate the fertility magic of May Day, along with its sister tree, Hawthorn. Blackthorn wands were used for divination and wishing at this time of year. Bridal chambers were decorated with Hawthorn and Blackthorn flowers in May, the musky scent of the flowers stimulating desire.[2]

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