Tree Medicine

Alder is common in Britain, growing on wet soils by rivers and retaining brown, cone-like fruits in the winter

In past civilisations alder stakes were used as foundations for lake villages because they were resistant to water.

Ancient man saw the alder as sacred because it appeared to bleed when cut as its sap turned red when exposed to the air.

Alder offers protection in conflicts and helps you to free yourself from anything that binds you or stops you from following your true path.

Alder also offers you moral and physical strength

The Ogham Apple was most likely the crab apple. This grows in moist fertile soils in oak woodlands.

It is a shrub-like tree although it can grow quite tall.

Its pink and white flowers appear in May, the fruits towards Autumn. When the fruits are cut across, the pentacle is outlined.

Apple wood is used for cabinet work and engraving. The blossom can be made into perfume and the fruits into jelly and wine.

The fruit of the domesticated apple tree is the part used the most for food and drink. An apple stuck with cloves will also take away any unpleasant smells.

Apple offers you healing and regeneration, both in body and mind.

Seek beauty and perfection in all you do and be balanced in all your thoughts and actions

Ash, native to the British Isles, flourishes best on limestone in the wetter regions.

Its wood has been used to make oars, spears and handles for tools as well as for furniture and carts.

Ash indicates that you are being asked to look at the wider picture of whatever is troubling you.

Stand back and look at your actions and thoughts, get a clear view of where you want to go.

Take bold action when it is called for.

Ash will help you to balance your inner and outer selves.

Birch was one of the first trees to emerge from the glacial ice.

This tree is native to Britain, growing on light soils and flourishing on scrub and heathland, moors and hills.

Birch bark is like paper and ancient civilisations used it to write upon.

It was also used to make canoes.

If you have chosen Birch today, new beginnings are indicated.

But first you have to rid yourself of all negativity, unhelpful thoughts and influences.

Birch helps with perception, enabling you to broaden your mind and expand your consciousness, so that you can gain understanding and peace of mind.

Blackthorn grows in hedgerows, woodland and scrub.

It carries white blossom in April and fruits later.

It is very thorny and provides a valuable hedge.

Its fruit is the sloe which can be made into sloe gin.

It is a magical tree and its branches have been used as cudgels and walking sticks.

Blackthorn indicates that there are forces at work within you or without you.

You may be finding conflict around you.

Blackthorn is a symbol of both punishment and protection and represents the struggle of new life arising from the breakdown of the old.

Elder grows everywhere in the British Isles except in Northern Scotland.

It flourishes in hedgerows, scrub and open woodland.

It's flowers and fruits can be made into wine.

Birds love elderberries. It's wood has been used for clogs, fishing rods and musical pipes.

It's leaf scars have the shape of the crescent moon.

Elder indicates a time of change and the end of one part of your life and the beginning of another.

There may be things you need to let go of, material, emotional or spiritual.

New ideas and thoughts will follow bringing creativity to a new phase in your life.

Furze or Gorse is a low-growing shrub with long spines.

It is evergreen and flowers for much of the year.

Its small yellow golden blossoms are fragrant and can be seen almost every month of the year.

It can be found on moorland.

Furze indicates a time to gather yourself and the things around you, together so that you retain your strength and gain new understanding.

There may be some influence from a Divine source so be open to it.

There may also be a radical change in your approach to life.

There will be new opportunities and new information.

The Hawthorn is native to Britain and Ireland and grows in hedgerows, woods and scrubland.

Its small white flowers appear in May turning to bright red berries and darker haws later in the year.

The berries can be used to make a jelly rich in Vitamin C.

It provides homes for many birds, small animals and insects.

It is a faery tree associated with the British Giant, Yspadadden Penkawr.

Hawthorn is also associated with May Day and fertility rites.

Hawthorn indicates a time of cleansing and a time when new positive energies will enter your life, rewarding you for past actions.

Before the new positive energies can move however, you may need to free your thoughts, cleanse your body and mind, making sure that your health, both physical and mental is in good condition.

The Hazel is native to the British Isles, growing in woodlands and on the edges of forests.

It flowers in February and March carrying both male and female flowers.

It later bears edible nuts which provide food for many small animals.

Hazel rods were used for divining water.

The coracle, used for over 3000 years has a frame made of hazel.

If you have chosen Hazel today, then creativity and perception are moving into your life.

You will be able to understand any underlying causes of events in your life, allowing you to see things in a new way.

Heather is abundant throughout Western Europe, growing profusely in acid soil.

It produces distinctive bell-like pink and mauve flowers.

Heather is a sign of romance and love.

It will bring luck and love into your life.

There is a strong connection between the conscious self and the deep levels of the unconscious.

Heather is a gateway between the inner and the outer worlds.

Help is available to enable your plans to reach fulfilment; the influences of imagination, intuition and dreams are strong.

Heather assists in healing.

Holly is a shrub which grows in open woodlands and in forest clearings.

It is evergreen and bears red berries in the winter.

It was used to make spear shafts and chariot wheel shafts.

It was sacred to the Druids and it was considered unlucky to cut down Holly.

Holly indicates that challenges are on the way but that like Holly you will face these challenges in a steadfast manner.

Holly helps with direct action and balanced judgement.

Holly can help you to overcome being too sensitive or aggressive.

Ivy carpets our woodland and can grow up to 30 metres up trees and buildings.

It bears yellow green flowers in Autumn and black berries.

It is very hardy and can live to a great age.

Ivy leaves steeped in rosewater and applied to the temples can alleviate headaches.

When steeped in vinegar and applied to the sides it eases aches and cramps.

Ivy is a tree of transformation, symbolising the search of the soul for enlightenment.

Ivy can assist you with forward vision and perception.

You may have to go through a testing period in order to move forward, but success will prevail despite any problems.

The Oak, native to Britain and Ireland, is considered to be the king of trees.

It grows in lowland forests and can reach up to 150 feet in height and live to an age of 800 years.

Its flowers, male and female catkins appear in April.

Oak wood is virtually indestructible. It is therefore used for beams, wood for ships, coffins and furniture.

The bark is used for tanning leather and dyeing.

If you have chosen Oak, then strength is being offered to you and the ability to endure and overcome any test which life may bring you.

If you feel despondent, Oak will help you to recover your inner strength.

The White Poplar or Aspen is native to the British Isles, growing on poorer soils and in damp, upland areas.

It is very hardy and grow up to 70 feet in height.

Its flowers appear before the leaves in catkin style and scatter their seeds in May.

Its leaves move with the slightest breeze and it is known as the talking tree.

Its wood was used to make shields, flooring, matches and arrows.

Its buoyant wood is also used for oars and paddles and is ideal for carving.Cattle, deer and goats eat the leaves of White Poplar or Aspen.

White Poplar asks you to listen to what it has to say.

It will help you to overcome any negative situations that appear, by giving you strength and willpower to overcome these obstacles. Be sensitive to what is going on around you, have compassion and draw on your inner strength.

The Reed grows mainly in marshy and wet land near sea or lakes.

It is a giant grass growing up to 12 feet high.

It is noted for its straight and flexible stems.

It was used to make pens and paper as well as arrows.

Reed is symbolic of flexibility and communication.

Become aware of the importance of flexibility in your life on all levels.

Learn to communicate with your Inner Self so that you may live your life in a harmonious way.

The Rowan or Mountain Ash is native to Britain and grows in woods, scrub and on mountains

It has a reputation for protection against enchantment.

The Rowan berry carries a tiny, five-pointed star, a pentagram, an ancient symbol of protection, opposite its stalk.

Rowan offers to help you retain control of all your senses.

It enables you to distinguish good from bad and gives you strength to avert anything which threatens your purpose and your serenity.

Rowan encourages you to look within, to seek answers from your Higher Self.

Rowan can help you to let go of resentment and heal old wounds.

Silver Fir is native to Scotland and is one of the first trees to emerge from the glacial ice.

It is a tall slender tree which grows in mountainous regions.

Its cones respond to rain by closing and they open again in the sun.

Silver Fir indicates rebirth and transformation.

It enables you to stay rooted in the Earth but allows you to see into the distance.

Silver Fir symbolises the growing light of the reborn Sun at midwinter emerging from the darkness.

There may be things you need to let go of, material, emotional or spiritual.

It is the beginning of the path to finding truth and life.

The Vine has been grown in the British Isles for a long time.

It's fruit supplies us with food and wine.

The Vine grows spirally and is a symbol of the intertwining of the conscious and the unconscious mind.

Vine indicates that if you turn your awareness within, you will find the key to your problems.

An inspired solution will be found there.

Be patient, you will be rewarded.

Let your intuition guide you and open your inner self so that it may gather together the things that might be needed for your inner development.

Willow is native to the British Isles but absent from Shetland.

It grows by streams and rivers and in wet woodland, marshes and fens.

It's long yellow male catkins appear in early Spring, the green female catkins appearing at the same time on different trees.

In ancient civilisations it was used to make wattle and daub houses and also for weaving room partitions.

It is the wood from which harps were traditionally made.

Willow is a sign of intuition and indicates that you may have unforeseen emotions and passions which will influence you.

Nurture any emotions and abilities which come to the surface now and get things into proper balance.

The Yew is a slow growing evergreen tree.

It grows in a unique way, its branches growing down into the ground to form new stems, which then wind around the old central trunk.

Its wood is dark and very strong.

It flowers in Spring, the male and female flowers on separate trees.

They may be dormant for several years but when ready they mature in February/March.

Yew was used to make furniture, panelling, fence-posts and ship-masts.

It was thought unlucky to cut down or damage a yew but its wood was used to make bows for armies as well as for magic wands.

The Druids used yew to make sticks for divination. Yew wood is extremely hard and resistant to water.

Yew is a powerful symbol of death and rebirth, of total transformation. Yew can help you connect to events that may have happened in your past which have been forgotten.

You can learn from these events and progress further along your spiritual path. Through working with Yew, direct contact with the past can be revealed and wisdom gained as well as a renewal of spiritual strength.