One of the most well-known local tales surrounds the vast natural hollow of the Hole of Horcum. Legend has it that the Hole was made by a giant called Wade who scooped a lump of earth to throw at his wife Bell during an argument, creating the nearby hill of Blakey…

The devil makes an appearance in many tales connected to the dramatic landscape of Sutton Bank, be it racing on horseback along the escarpment edge against a Knight, standing astride the gap between Roulston Scar and Hood Hill (known locally as the Devil’s Leap or…

Yorkshire Legends and Traditions of Wells England Springs and wells of water have, in all lands and in all ages, been greatly valued, and in some regarded with a feeling of veneration little, if at all, short of worship. They have yielded their treasure to the…

BUTTONS, BRAS AND PINS (The Folklore of British Holy Wells) By Rowan First published at Lughnasa 1996 Our ancestors were much given to undertaking visits and pilgrimages to various wells, springs and other bodies of water which were reputed locally (and in some cases…

Henbane is one of the legendary “witch” plants, renowned in folklore for its claimed magickal qualities and it features in many of the recipes for witches’ flying ointments which have been preserved in the records of the witch trials in an various…

The alder is a very ancient tree that has grown in the British Isles for thousands of years. The January tree is easily recognized by its regularly spaced branches and its conical shape. Like the willow, it is a water-loving tree. The timber is oily and…

All apple trees are descended from the crab apple, which was likely the tree mentioned in the tree Ogham, as it grew wild in the British Isles and across much of Europe during the time of the Druids. The apple represents choice and the letter Q (Quert) in the druidic…

N~Nuin~Ash The ash tree has deeply penetrating roots and tends to sour the soil, which makes it hard for any other plants to grow around it. Its branches are thick and strong . The ash can grow to one hundred and thirty feet high. The March tree has distinctive black…

Stachys is a genus of about 300 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants and shrubs in the family Lamiaceae. The distribution of the genus covers Europe, Asia, Africa, Australasia and North America. Common names include Heal-all, self-heal, woundwort, betony,…

The devil makes an appearance in many tales connected to the dramatic landscape of Sutton Bank, be it racing on horseback along the escarpment edge against a Knight, standing astride the gap between Roulston Scar and Hood Hill (known locally as the Devil’s Leap or…

Yorkshire Legends and Traditions of Wells England Springs and wells of water have, in all lands and in all ages, been greatly valued, and in some regarded with a feeling of veneration little, if at all, short of worship. They have yielded their treasure to the…

BUTTONS, BRAS AND PINS (The Folklore of British Holy Wells) By Rowan First published at Lughnasa 1996 Our ancestors were much given to undertaking visits and pilgrimages to various wells, springs and other bodies of water which were reputed locally (and in some cases…

Henbane is one of the legendary “witch” plants, renowned in folklore for its claimed magickal qualities and it features in many of the recipes for witches’ flying ointments which have been preserved in the records of the witch trials in an various…

The alder is a very ancient tree that has grown in the British Isles for thousands of years. The January tree is easily recognized by its regularly spaced branches and its conical shape. Like the willow, it is a water-loving tree. The timber is oily and…

All apple trees are descended from the crab apple, which was likely the tree mentioned in the tree Ogham, as it grew wild in the British Isles and across much of Europe during the time of the Druids. The apple represents choice and the letter Q (Quert) in the druidic…

N~Nuin~Ash The ash tree has deeply penetrating roots and tends to sour the soil, which makes it hard for any other plants to grow around it. Its branches are thick and strong . The ash can grow to one hundred and thirty feet high. The March tree has distinctive black…

Stachys is a genus of about 300 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants and shrubs in the family Lamiaceae. The distribution of the genus covers Europe, Asia, Africa, Australasia and North America. Common names include Heal-all, self-heal, woundwort, betony,…

The silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) is the most common tree in much of Europe. It is one of the first trees to grow back in an area after a mature forest is cut; this is probably a large part of its symbolic connection with new beginnings. Description When the huge…