Right now, I am loving the Rowan trees. They’re always pretty, slender and delicate with beautiful soft fluffy-looking creamy blooms in spring, but at this time of year they really are the star of the show with their frond-like leaves and bright red clusters of berries.
I have two in my garden; they’re thin and lithe, like gawky teenagers, but they bring me great joy.
In Irish, they are known as Caorthann, but other names are ‘Quicken tree’ and ‘Witches tree’. They are a native tree to Ireland, can grow up to 18m tall, and live for over a hundred years. They produce their flowers in May and June, whilst the fruits appear in September and are ripe by October.
The wood of the rowan is hard and pale, and in times past was used to make bows, tools, plates and bowls.
The rowan also had a great many medicinal applications. A tea was made from the berries to treat urinary problems, haemorrhoids and diarrhoea. Berry juice made a great mild laxative, and soothed inflamed mucous membranes as a gargle. As they contained high levels of Vitamin C, the berries were also used to cure scurvy. Today, one of the sugars in the fruit is apparently sometimes given intravenously to reduce pressure in an eyeball with glaucoma. A decoction of the bark was thought to cleanse the blood, and was given as a treatment for diarrhoea, nausea, and upset stomach.
It’s the winning combination of dark green frond-like leaves and thick clusters of glossy bright red berries which does it for me… gorgeous!
Once revered by the Druids, it is hardly surprising that it later became associated with witchcraft, paganism and the supernatural. It was used in rituals associated with empowerment and protection, especially from fire and lightning. To increase virility and male strength, a small piece of rowan inscribed with ogham would be carried. Hung around the necks of hounds, it was believed to increase their speed, and it also possessed the power to protect from evil spirits and the prevent the dead from rising.
In the Celtic Tree Alphabet, the rowan is represented by the Ogham symbol luis. 
Of course, it is not surprising that the rowan features quite a lot in tales of Irish mythology.
In the tale of the Hostel of the Quicken Trees, Fionn mac Cumhail and his men of the Fianna are invited to dine in the beautiful hostelry of the same name, described thus…
“It was a fair and beautiful building, with bright intricate carvings on the wood of its uprights and a fresh thatch that shone in the sun like gold, and all around it grew quicken trees with berries full and red on them. “
No sooner had they entered, then the walls became rough planks with gaps which the wind howled through, and all the finery disappeared. Most alarmingly, the one door was firmly locked. They were trapped.
Fionn put his thumb of wisdom to his mouth, and activated his second sight. He divined that Midac Mac Lochlan had raised the enchantment against them, and was bringing a huge army to kill them. Pity he didn’t think to try that trick before he led his men inside the hostel.
Anyway, there were many battles, but in the end Fionn was freed when Diarmuid (who later eloped with Fionn’s pretty young wife, the Princess Grainne) cut off the heads of their enemy and sprinkled their blood around the hostel. Yuk! 😝
Rowan blossom (c) wikimedia. By No machine-readable author provided. Olegivvit assumed (based on copyright claims). – No machine-readable source provided. Own work assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY 2.5, httpscommons.wikimedia.orgwindex.phpcuri
According to Lady Gregory, when Grainne was brought to her wedding feast with Fionn, she was disappointed to fin him older than her father. But then her eyes fell on Diarmuid…
“Who is that sweet-worded man,” she said then, “with the dark hair, and cheeks like the rowan berry, on the left side of Oisin, son of Finn?” “That is Diarmuid, grandson of Duibhne,” said the Druid, “that is the best lover of women in the whole world.”
Hmmm… with a recommendation like that, it’s hardly any wonder that she jilted Fionn at the alter and ran off with Diarmuid. In all fairness, though, she wasn’t fickle. She and Diarmuid stayed together for twenty years until he was gored to death by the great boar of Benbulben, and they had a daughter and four sons together.
During their flight from the jealous Fionn, who was bent on vengeance, Grainne, who was by this time heavy with child, took a fancy for the rowan berries of a particular enchanted tree which was guarded by a giant.
You know how pregnant women with a craving get; poor Diarmuid had no choice but to challenge the giant. Such was his strength and valour, he outwitted the giant and killed him. Grainne was now free to gorge on the bright red shiny fruit. Despite her condition, she and Diarmuid climbed high into the rowan tree, where the berries were sweetest.
Meanwhile, Fionn agreed to a truce with his enemies, the Mac Mornas, if they brought him either Diarmuid’s head, or a handful of the magical quicken berries. Yeah, I think you can see where this is going, right?
When the mac Mornas reported finding the dead giant, and half the rowan berries eaten, Fionn knew at once who was responsible. He went straight to the tree, believing Diarmuid was hiding in it, where he challenged his son Oisin to a game of chess.
Each time Fionn was about to make a move which would defeat Oisin, a red berry fell out of the tree onto the square Oisin should move to. In this way, Oisin beat Fionn at chess for the very first time, and Fionn knew with certainty that it was Diarmuid who had helped Oisin, for only Diarmuid could ever beat him at chess.
Diarmuid leaped over the heads and weapons of the Fianna and escaped to safety. Poor pregnant Grainne was abandoned in the tree, but fortunately for her, Óengus Óg, the God of Love, took pity on herplight, and like the true gallant gent that he was, he came to her rescue.
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Wow! I’ve never even heard of a rowan tree! They’e very pretty, and have such a rich place in your history. 🙂
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You might have heard of it as the mountain ash, Rachel?
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Oh, okay, I think so. 🙂
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Another wonderful tale – and oh, those fickle women! I had to check about rowan trees in the US – they are called Mountain Ash here. They grow in the northern climes of the US and in Canada. Too bad they would not do well in North Carolina.
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I love reading your posts, Ali. Yep, Fionn should have definitely divined the trap before going into the hostel, not afterward. Keeping your cohorts safe trumps curiosity. 🙂 Although it was just pointed out to me, that would have made for a very poor story… less of an extraordinary day …:-) Unrelatedly, druids also made staffs out of the rowan wood and used them for warding… protecting the place they were stationed at from anything unwanted and unseen. I remember as Mairin, this usually resulted in staying up all night and being very cold, but at the time this was felt to be extremely necessary.
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Thanks Éilis! 😁 And you are right, it would have made a very poor story. As it is, it turned out to be a very looooong convoluted story with many battles, and heroes, of course. Sadly, also many deaths. I feel for Mairin… I need my sleep at night! But magic has to be worked at, I guess, and nothing worth having is ever easy, as they say.
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Love the story Ali. I didn’t know about the medicinal properties of the Rowan, thanks for the info.
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Thanks Jean. I think most plants and trees are credited with some medicinal value. How much of it is true and actually works is another matter entirely! 😁
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Got to love a tree climbing pregga! whoever said we needed to rest while up the duff?! I think there’s a cure for everything in medicine. There has to be.
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You know I love the Diarmuid and Grainne story anyway, Ali, but Fionn here takes the biscuit. How does an Irish legend get his revenge? “My mortal enemy is hiding in that tree! Quick! I must immediately go and PLAY A GAME OF CHESS UNDERNEATH HIM! THAT’LL LEARN HIM!” It’s no wonder we don’t see their like anymore. Natural selection, and all that.
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Agree, these Rowan trees are beautiful ~ and with such a rich history as well. Wish you a great day Ali!
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I, too, love the Rowan Trees. They are up there with the Holly Tree when it comes to that dark green foliage and bright red berries. Dare I say, reminds me that Christmas is on its way 😱
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How dare you say the C word on my blog Hugh!!! 😵😲😝
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I better not mention that the Elves Costumes need collecting from the dry cleaners then. 😱
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Ah yes so beautiful; Finland, where we’ve just been is full of Rowan splashing their colourful berries against the majority firs. Informative post as ever Ali
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Cheers, Geoff! You do get about a bit, dont you???
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Another interesting post, Ali 🙂 I love rowan trees as well, they are so lovely, especially as you say at this time of year, when they are crowned with berries. I like the name Rowan as well, for a boy or a girl, and I loved reading all the associated legends you shared (though I did feel for poor pregnant Grainne, left in the tree – he must have been some sort of lover for her to get over that!) 😀
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He was Diarmuid… everyone loved him, you know the type… every woman wants to be with him, every man wants to be like him. Sigh. There are many stories of him, but sadly he only gets remembered for running off with Grainne.
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I do know the type, sigh. Bloody Diarmuid. 😀
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Lol! 😁😂😄
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Its a sad truth that many potentially useful drugs are being destroyed as the Amazon jungle is destroyed by encroaching mankind. We are too busy gazing into space.
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Yes, that is certainly true. And wallets and bank vaults.
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A good read and with pictures to enhance. Interestingly all medicines originated in the plant world and many still do.
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Yes, I think that’s wonderful! To think that so many of our ailments were treated naturally instead of with chemicals is just amazing. Many of these wonder plants are just considered weeds nowadays. We have lost so much important knowledge and become so arrogant. 😔
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Rowan is interestingly featured with pics and lore. The berries and its medicinal properties remind of an almost similar tree in tropical parts of India called the rose apple or java apple tree with berries in white, pale green, rose and purple colours. So more than the rowan berry, it is the Irish lore behind it that fascinates…
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I think the Rowan grows in temperate regions around the world, and that the berries are often different colours. Perhaps the tree youre thinking of is a species of rowan. I must admit though, I am captivated by the stories too, and the characters particularly. 😊 Thanks, Raj!
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They are lovely trees as well as being symbolic and magical. Strange coincidence, rowan berries are in the story I wrote for Sue Vincent’s photo prompt this week 🙂
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Oh… havent seen that yet. But doesn’t surprise me, rowan berries often appear in your stories and poems! 😊
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I wonder why?
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Magic? Beauty?
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You might have something there 🙂
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😆
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A beautiful tree Ali. I used to have a weeping cotoneaster that I loved because of the vibrant green leaves and dark red berries. I doubt there’s be much of a medicinal use from that though.
Thanks for the wonderful trip through Irish folklore again.
xxx Gigantic Hugs xxx
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You’re welcome, David, and thank you! I dont know about cotoneasters, but I would never dismiss their value… I have been truly gobsmacked by the uses that have been attributed to the most innocent little plants we think of as weeds!
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Now, I know what that big tree is at the side of our yard! I was looking at the berry clusters yesterday, wondering what the tree was called and if they were edible or had medicinal properties. Thanks for the history 🙂
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Lol! Did I edumacate you??? Fantastic! Hehe.
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Yes! And so timely. I’ll make sure it really is a Rowan before I imbibe 🙂
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Pretty trees, and great stories, as always.
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Thanks Craig! 😊
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