Last week, we looked at the use of dowsing to find treasure or criminals. Like water dowsing, this method requires the use of a rod that twitches in the hands when the target is close. But the other method of dowsing involves a pendulum. That is, an item suspended from a chain, cord, or hair, […]
folklore
Dowsing for Treasure and Criminals: Extra Uses for Divining Rods
Dowsing is often used to find water, minerals, or even lost items. Where divination usually seeks to provide information, here the information is of a directly practical or tangible sort. Rather than telling a fortune, or providing a prophetic dream that must be interpreted, dowsing relates information about the presence of something the dowser is […]
Walnut Trees in Folklore: Evil Shade and Helpful Remedies
When it comes to the walnut tree, we’re probably more familiar with their produce than the actual tree. Walnuts are easily recognisable, and present in everything from nut selections to coffee cake. We might even know that classic Jaguar cars often feature walnut veneers on their dashboards. Many guitars also feature walnut in their construction. […]
Poplar Trees: Folk Belief, Remedies, and the Arbor Tree
Poplar trees are perhaps one of the lesser-known trees that I’ve featured on this blog. Many people can recognise an oak tree on sight, but how many could recognise the poplar? Indeed, how many would realise John Constable added a black poplar to the background of his famous painting, ‘The Hay Wain’? We find these […]
Yew Trees: Death, Churchyards, and Helpful Tools
Back in November 2020, I explored the folklore of the yew tree; specifically, the common yew, or English yew (Taxus baccata). Yes, it’s a poisonous tree. Yes, it’s linked with death. And yes, people like to say they pre-date the churchyards in which we find them. But in the intervening six years, my library of […]
The London Plane: A Tree Suited to City Life
Periodically, I choose a plant, tree or fungus to explore, only to find there is very little folklore about them. Invariably, there are two reasons for this. First, the plant, tree or fungus has little use to humans, so no one bothered much with it in the past. This sometimes applies to toxic specimens, too. […]
