Welcome back to White Rose of Avalon my Darlings!    For today’s post, I have decided to discuss some of my favorite Faery-related trees.    In many ways, all trees and plants can be thought of as related to Faeries, since the Fae folk are intimately connected to nature!    However, several trees are especially connected with and therefore sacred to the Fae, and Faery Goddesses.    I will be going over some of the lore of three of my favorite Faery trees in this post, partially inspired by the fact that this month in my herbalism class we are focusing on the Orchard of Avalon!   Each tree will have its own special section here, but this is not a countdown, just a post spreading some love for Faery trees.   Without further ado, let’s get onto the discussion of these Faery trees!

HAWTHORN

~Hawthorn is the tree of Beltane, intimately associated with the Goddesses of May!    Sacred to May Queens and Flower Brides, the blossoms are often worn in the hair of these Goddesses, and women embodying her energy, at Beltane celebrations.    Hawthorn is an excellent heart tonic, which has its magickal associations with a holiday of fertility and romance being intertwined with its heart-centric medicinal properties, in a beautiful mirroring effect!    When I think of Hawthorn, I imagine sacred marriages and sacred sexuality practices at Beltane.    Images of Rhiannon and Pwyll, and Blodeuwedd and Gronw flow through my head.    I also relate Hawthorn to the Lovers card in the Tarot, as this card is so associated with Beltane for me, and sometimes does even feature a Hawthorn tree!    At the end of the day, Hawthorn is such a beautiful and nurturing tree that helps remind us of the power of our hearts!   

ELDER 

~The Elder tree is sometimes called “The Queen of Trees” and I love that image for this regal and magickal tree, which is often very associated with Faery Queens!    The juice of the bark of Elder has long been said to give humans the Sight, that is the ability to see into the Otherworld of Faery.    The berries are excellent antioxidants with huge amounts of vitamin C and therefore offer a lot of immune support, hence their inclusion in many herbal remedies for healing and preventing colds and the flu!    Elder is an interesting tree when it comes to Faerylore, as Elder is both revered as sacred to the Fae folk and also said to protect against them, depending on the folkloric sources.    This liminality of association for this tree makes it all the more Faery to me!    In my opinion, Elder is both sacred to the Fae, as well as protective from their mischief, in that the tree acts as a beacon for Fae that wish to help and protect us from being led astray by those that have ill will!    I will also note that pretty much every association with Elder and the Fae was historically also attributed to Elder and Witches.    I have even read folklore that states that Witches have the ability to literally turn themselves into Elder trees!   At the end of the day, Elder is a tree with much strange and wonderful folklore!

APPLE  

~Ah, my beloved Apple, of course, I had to end with the Faery tree I have had the longest relationship with!   Apples are such magickal fruits, with the seeds in the center forming a pentagram, showing the deeply held knowledge within.   The tree has sweet blossoms in the spring, which are also often important at Beltane.    The fruit is considered the fruit of Knowledge, the fruit of Immortality, the fruit associated with Fertility, and we cannot forget the fruit that gives Avalon her name!   At least according to most accounts, but some scholars have alternate explanations for how Avalon became associated with Apples, but no matter the origins of the name, the Isle is definitely forever linked with the tree and fruit.    According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, the Orchards of Avalon are said to grow fruit all year long without the need for cultivation!   Apples are sacred to many Goddesses, whether they are Faery Goddesses, Goddesses of Death, or Love Goddesses!    For example, Morgan le Fay being the Lady of Avalon obviously holds Apples as sacred, and Aphrodite holds the Apple as sacred due to her winning the Apple of Discord (and beginning the Trojan War).    There are also the Golden Apples of the Goddess Idun in Norse myth, which literally gave the Gods their youth and immortality!   I believe this is because Apples are the fruit of Knowledge, Fertility, and Immortality, as I mentioned above, all of this linking them to the Divine Feminine in a huge way!   This is why Apples are so potently linked to many forms of magick, from love spells to protection rituals, to fertility and abundance workings.    The adaptability and immortal nature of Apples is very Faery to me, after all, what are Faerylands if not liminal and misty in nature and lands of immortality?    At the end of the day, Apple has so much folklore from around the world that attests to its magick!    

~I hope you have enjoyed reading some of my thoughts on my three favorite Faery trees.   Did this give you some food for thought?    Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

Note on Image: The image at the top of the post is an Elder tree.   I found the image on https://www.countrylife.co.uk/nature/history-elder-tree-deities-dryads-shakespeare-j-k-rowling-197720.

Tarot Note: I have a page offering tarot and oracle readings for those interested in these services!    I am very happy to be offering these readings to my treasured readers at White Rose of Avalon!  Link to page: https://whiteroseofavalon.life/tarot-and-oracle-readings/

Further Reading

• Magickal Faery Plants by Sandra Hynes
• The Herbal Alchemist’s Handbook by Karen Harrison
• Ogam: The Celtic Oracle of the Trees by Paul Rhys Mountfort
• The Ninefold Way of Avalon by Jhenah Telyndru
• Vita Merlini by Geoffrey of Monmouth
• https://www.icysedgwick.com/elder-tree-folklore/
• https://thepresenttree.com/blogs/tree-meanings/every-hawthorn-tree-has-a-story
• https://thepresenttree.com/blogs/tree-meanings/apple-tree-meaning