Tree Calendars

An Ogham Calendar- From ’06 Lunar Calendar dedicated to the Goddess in Her many guises
(based on Graves) (Luna Press, Boston, MA - Tel. 617-427-9846, http://www.thelunapress.com):

Month starts first new moon in:
December (30) 2005- B (Beith),
January (29) 2006 L (Luis),
February (27) N (Nuin),
March (29) F (Fearn),
April (27) S (Saille),
May (27) H (Uath),
June (25) D (Duir),
July (24) T (Tinne),
August (23) C (Coll),
September (22) M (Muin),
October (22) G (Gort),
November (20) NG (Ngetal),
December (20) R (Ruis).

An Ogham Calendar- From Liz and Colin Murray's Celtic Tree Oracle (also based on Graves) (Gregorian calendar):

November- B (Beith),
December L (Luis),
January F (Fearn),
February S (Saille),
March N (Nuin),
April H (Huath),
May D (Duir),
June T (Tinne),
July C (Coll),
August M (Muin),
September G (Gort),
October NG (Ngetal),
Last 3 days of October R (Ruis).

Dr. Peter Berresford Ellis’ demolition of ogham calendars as historical artifacts,
“The Fabrication of Celtic Astrology”:
http://cura.free.fr/xv/13ellis2.html

“A group of Celtic scholars have now been working in the cosmological and astrological areas accumulating and assessing the substantial literary evidence, of which I have given some indication during the last year. This will soon be published. It is now time to put the dead wood of Graves' ‘tree zodiac' into the fire where it belongs.”

Kipling's Tree Song!

A Tree Song
(Exerpt from Puck of Pook’s Hill
by Rudyard Kipling)
 
Of all the trees that grow so fair,
Old England to adorn,
Greater are none beneath the Sun,
Than Oak, and Ash, and Thorn.
Sing Oak, and Ash, and Thorn, good Sirs
(All of a Midsummer morn)!
Surely we sing no little thing,
In Oak, and Ash, and Thorn!
 
Oak of the Clay lived many a day,
Or ever Æneas began;
Ash of the Loam was a lady at home,
When Brut was an outlaw man;
Thorn of the Down saw New Troy Town
(From which was London born);
Witness hereby the ancientry
Of Oak, and Ash, and Thorn!
 
Yew that is old in churchyard mould,
He breedth a mighty bow;
Alder for shoes do wise men choose,
And beech for cups also.
But when ye have killed, and your bowl is spilled,
And your shoes are clean outworn,
Back ye must speed for all that ye need,
To Oak, and Ash, and Thorn!
 
Ellum she hateth mankind, and waiteth
Till every gust be laid,
To drop a limb on the head of him,
That anyway trusts her shade:
But whether a lad be sober or sad,
Or mellow with ale from the horn,
He will take no wrong when he lieth along
‘Neath Oak, and Ash, and Thorn!
 
Oh, do not tell the Priest our plight,
Or he would call it a sin;
But - we have been out in the woods all night,
A-conjuring Summer in!
And we bring you news by word of mouth -
Good news for cattle and corn -
Now is the Sun come up from the South,
With Oak, and Ash, and Thorn!
 
Sing Oak, and Ash, and Thorn, good Sirs
(All of a Midsummer morn)!
England shall bide till Judgment Tide,
By Oak, and Ash, and Thorn!

Some Ogham phrases from The Scholar’s Primer
(Auraicept na N-´Eces) (From various translations, mostly George Calder)

Much of our knowledge about the meanings of the Ogham alphabet is derived from The Scholar's Primer. Other versions of this text are found in the 12th century Book of Leinster, the late 14th century Yellow Book of Lecan and The Book of Ballymote. These meanings are mostly about the actual uses of the trees- as types of firewood, cattle fodder, what can be made from them, what insects or animals might hide in them- or are simple descriptions of the trees. While some of the meanings are quite intriguing, I don’t believe that these lists are specifically related to divination or magick- although they could have been part of a larger system that was.

From The Scholar’s Primer:

Word Oghams of Morann Mac Main:
b, beith, birch - faded trunk and fair hair
l, luis, rowan - delight of eye, blaze or flame
f, fearn, alder - shield of warrior-bands
s, saille, willow - hue of the lifeless
n, nion, ash - checking of peace (a sign of peace)
h, huath, hawthorn - pack of wolves
d, duir, oak - highest of bushes
t, tinne, holly - “Another thing, the meaning of
that today” (I have no idea what this means... -ed)
c, coll, hazel - fairest of trees
q, quert, apple - shelter of a hind, a fold, lunatic
m, muin, vine - strongest of effort
g, gort, ivy - sweeter than grasses, cornfield
ng, ngetal, broom - a physician's strength
st, straif, blackthorn - strongest of red (dye color)
r, ruis, elder - intensest of blushes, from shame
a, ailm, silver fir - loudest of groanings, death rattle
o, onn, furze - helper of horses, chariot wheels
u, ura, heather - in cold dwellings, mould of earth
e, eadha, aspen - distinguished wood for the trembling tree
i, idho, yew - oldest of woodsea, ebad, aspen (or white poplar)- most buoyant of wood
oi, oir, spindle tree- most venerable of structures
ui, uillean, gooseberry- sweetest of wood
io, ipin, honeysuckle (or woodbine)- juicy wood
ae, emancoll, witchhazel- expression of weariness

Word Oghams of Mac ind Oic:
b, beith, birch - most silvery of skin
l, luis, rowan - friend of cattle
f, fearn, alder - guarding of milk
s, saille, willow - activity of bees
n, nion, ash - fight of women
h, huath, hawthorn - blanching of face
d, duir, oak - carpenter's work
t, tinne, holly - fires of coal
c, coll, hazel - friend of cracking
q, quert, apple - force of the man
m, muin, vine - condition of slaughter, a man’s back
g, gort, ivy - (med nercc, meaning “abundance of mead.”)
ng, ngetal, broom - (this list skips this letter..)
st, straif, blackthorn - increasing of secrets
r, ruis, elder - redness of faces, sap of the rose
a, ailm, silver fir - beginning of an answer, child’s cry
o, onn, furze - smoothest of work
u, ura, heather - growing of plants, the soil
e, eadha, aspen - synonym for a friend
i, idho, yew - most withered of wood, or a sword

ea, ebad, aspen (or white poplar)- corrective of a sick man
oi, oir, spindle tree- (this list skips this letter)
ui, uillean, gooseberry- wonderful of taste
io, ipin, woodbine (or honeysuckle)- great equal length
ae, emancoll, witchhazel- (this list skips this one)