THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Oak

Lisa Karen Miller

          The mighty oak was the pre-eminent tree of European mythology. The tree of all the Titans, it was also venerated by Norsemen, Druids, Celts, and Anglo-Saxons. To Epirus, a sanctuary of Zeus, Greeks traveled to consult the sacred oak, in whose rustling leaves was heard Jove’s voice.

          The most powerful are those found at crossroads, or those having a split trunk.  Any which have bent to form an arch are equally strong.

          Jove’s tree was often struck by his lightning bolts.  Conversely, people took shelter from it in a storm.  When the great oak in Needwood Forest was struck and burnt, people traveled from afar to collect blackened chips as lightning charms. 

          The tree was beloved by sky gods. They left, by means of lightning flash, the magical mistletoe hanging in its boughs. This doubled its effectiveness as a lightning charm. In rural English cottages, oak twigs, oak apples, and acorns can still be found in jars to protect the home from the sky’s fury.

          Similarly, shipbuilders preferred oak not only for its strength but its magical lightning-repelling abilities. Oak wood was used in ceremonial midsummer fires. The perpetual fire of Vesta in Rome was oak-fed.

          According to legend, King Charles II hid in the Boscobel Oak while escaping from Cromwell’s Parliamentarians. The day he ascended the throne in 1660 was called Royal Oak Day. Everyone was expected to sport a spray of oak leaves on the hat or lapel on May 29^th.

          Young lovers used acorns in a stream to predict the path of their relationship. If the acorns drifted together, the union would be long and happy. If apart, someone went home crying.

          Oak apples, or galls, are growths made by the larvae of the gall wasp. A remarkably permanent ink can be made from them. The bark and galls are astringent and antiseptic. A decoction treats sore throats, burns, and cuts. A powdered snuff was used for nosebleeds.

          The bark provides a brown dye and a tannin.  As leather tanners seemed immune to tuberculosis, the bark was used in its treatment.

          Acorns can be roasted and used as a coffee substitute. A protein-rich bread can be made from them, if one has the patience to pound them into flour. Fattening pigs were sent into the woods to feed on acorns and other fallen nuts, known as mast.

         When walking among oaks on a breezy day, listen to hear what Jove might be saying.

© Copyright 2023 Lisa Karen Miller