Celtic Tree Month of Hawthorn

Sixth month of the Celtic Tree calendar, May 13th – June 9

Planet: Mars and Venus

Symbolism: Purification, sacred marriage  and male-female unity

Stone: Lapis Lazuli, Blue Calcite

Birds: Blackbird, Owl, Purple Martin

Color: Midnight Blue, Purple

Deity: Olwen, Blodeuwedd, Gardea, Hymen, Hera, Virgin Mary

Sabbat: Beltane, May Day

Folk names: May bush, May tree, quickset, thorn-apple tree, white thorn.

Medicinal properties: 

• The flowers, leaves and fruits of the Hawthorn have properties that reduce blood pressure and stimulate the heart, as well as act as a mild sedative. 
• In herbal medicine they treat heart and circulatory disorders, migraine, menopausal conditions, angina, and insomnia. 
• The flowers are strongest as sedatives, and used externally can treat acne and skin blemishes. 
• The berries (also known as “Pixie Pears”) contain Vitamin B complex and Vitamin C. They can be crushed and used to ease diarrhea, dysentery, and kidney disorders. 

It is strongly advised against self medication because of its effects on the heart.

 Magickal properties: 

• The tree essence cleanses the heart of negativity and stimulates love and forgiveness.
• The Hawthorn is the tree most representative of the struggles the Christian Church had in suppressing pagan beliefs and celebrations. 
• Hawthorn is respected as a tree of enchantment under the protection of the faery realms. 
• It guards wells and springs. Its beautiful flowers are said to help prayers reach heaven.
• If you sit under a Hawthorn on May 1st you are liable to be whisked away for good to the faery underworld. 
• The blooms of the hawthorn are used in spells for fertility, happiness, and good luck in fishing.
• To take a blossoming hawthorn branch inside one’s house will cause their mother to die. 
• Wands made of this wood are of great power. The blossoms are highly erotic to men. 
• Hawthorn can be used for protection, love and marriage spells.
•  The original May Poles were made of Hawthorn
•  Hawthorn can be woven into a growing fence called a Hedgerow. 

Hawthorn Workings: 

• Carefully gather a few thorns from the tree. On a piece of paper, write the name of the person or situation from which you seek protection, and then wrap it around the thorns.  Bury this in the ground – if possible near the tree from which the thorns were collected.

• In Spring, make up a wash by soaking a quantity of fresh leaves and flowers in half a bucket of hot water. Leave overnight – and next day sprinkle drops about the rooms of your home, along edges and into corners for protection from the negative energies brought by bad spirits. 

• At New Year, make a Hawthorn ball and hang it in the house for the entire year for good luck and for protection against witch-craft.. Make a new one the following year, burning the old and using its ash to protect the boundaries of the garden. (The ball needs to be quite large, as even after soaking, the hawthorn twigs crack easily during shaping).

• For help with a difficult situation, take  seven (a faery number) or some say ten – strong, sharp thorns found at the tip of hawthorn twigs. Whisper to each one the problem that needs solving. Wrap them in a leaf and bury them under the hawthorn bush.

• At Beltane, or May-day, weave a small crown of Hawthorn blossom and leave it for the faeries before festivities begin. If a faery should find and wear it, the giver will be granted untold blessings.

• Protect a newborn baby from any pernicious spirit with leaves of hawthorn in the cradle.

• Hawthorn is known as a psychic shield that can lift the spirits, and a little charm of the wood is a thoughtful gift for a friend going through a time of particular vulnerability or depression. Dried flowers, berries or leaves can be burned in incense at a ritual working for the same purpose.

• A hawthorn wand is especially effective against malevolent spirits. The wand is best cut ‘green’ in order that the bark will peel easily, so, when choosing your wood, ensure a suitable gift for the faery defender of the tree.