In last week's #CreteNature blog we found a beautiful ivy hedgerow buzzing with life. Ivy has been associated with the Winter solstice since pagan times but in Germany they traditionally tie it to the outside of a church. Is this to protect it against
a) the devil
b) lightning
c) witches
Somewhat surprisingly the answer is lightning. Why this should be is a matter of speculation; perhaps someone observed that ivy covered trees did not get struck by lightning so often as bare trees? A similar thought was held by the druids who believed that Ivy's Christmas counterpart, Holly, if self seeded near a dwelling, would protect the inhabitants from fire, nightmares and, once again, lightning.
More seasonal nature notes and other trivia in this week's #CreteNature blog: The Springs of Paraspori
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Recent Posts
-
Common Grazing Land near Ierapetra "Erebus this is Erebus, gathering point for the recently deceased. Please take your ticke...
-
Before we begin, Chodov is now a suburb of Prague, capital of the Czech Republic. Previously, the Kingdom of Bohemia occupied the western ...
-
And so the seasons progress: as the northern hemisphere battles the cold and rain the southern braces itself and prepares for the fir...
-
After last weeks detour to The Dew ponds of Katharo we’ll continue our journey up the valley, crossing the tarmac road that cuts across...
-
Just to the north of Bassenthwaite lake lies Messengermire Wood. Who the messenger was, and whether he got sucked into the mire, is a t...
No comments:
Post a Comment