In a correction to September’s post, it is Muin (M), the vine, that is associated with the period of September 2 – 29 in the Celtic Tree Calendar. Muin is the eleventh letter of the Ogham alphabet.
The vine produces grapes, and in turn, wine. It is connected to prophecy and truthful speaking because people who have imbibed too much of its gifts lose their truth filters and thus, are incapable of being deceptive and dishonest.
Ivy Signifies Regeneration
Ivy is the Celtic Tree for September 30 – October 27. It is represented by Gort, the twelfth letter of the Ogham alphabet. It signifies regeneration, determination, resilience, and love.
Gort coincides with Samhain (Halloween), which not only marks the end of the harvest season and the year, but also the beginning of the next.
Alhough not a tree, ivy is nonetheless an evergreen plant that survives when many other plants have succumbed to droughts and cold weather. Because it is one of the last plants to keep its green leaves, ivy is a reminder that while the approaching winter signals death, which is merely one aspect of the endless cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Ivy often survives after its host plant has died, another reminder that life goes on.
Ivy is nearly impossible to remove from a garden. With roots deep in the earth, ivy can cling to almost anything—trellises, other trees, graves—as it climbs skyward. This characteristic suggests loyalty and affectionate attachment.
Like the double helix of DNA, its tenacious growth symbolizes the soul’s search for life, and its arrow-shaped leaves represent forward movement. At the same time, its abundance in cemeteries suggests the dark energy of unconsciousness and the unseen Otherworld.
Medicine, Divination, and Folklore
Ivy’s esteem in ancient Greece and Rome is seen in wreaths that crowned both athletes and poets.
The Greek physician and philosopher Hippocrates (c. 460 – c. 370 BC), traditionally referred to as the “Father of Medicine,” used ivy to relieve pain, reduce swelling, and prevent intoxication. The practice of encircling the brow with ivy to prevent intoxication is seen in depictions of Bacchus, the Roman god of revelry. Others, however, say that Bacchus wears ivy because it grew in his fabled homeland of Nyssa.
Ivy contains saponins (Latin sapon, soap), which are bitter-tasting plant-derived organic chemicals that have a foamy quality when agitated in water.
According to the National Institute for Health, ivy-leaf preparations are safe to use for viral upper respiratory tract infections and bronchitis, but their efficacy is uncertain. Research validates the plant’s antiviral action against influenza A virus and enterovirus. Although ivy tonics were once used to prevent the plague, there is no evidence that it worked.
As an expectorant, ivy alleviates respiratory disease because its main bioactive chemicals decrease muscle spasms in the airways, improve bronchodilation, and break up mucus secretions. Ivy also lowers inflammation and oxidation.
Modern herbalists employ its anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-parasitic, anti-inflammatory, anti-arthritic, and antioxidant properties. To treat a cough, they suggest a pleasant tea steeped from dried and ground ivy leaves. Concoctions are commercially available as capsules, syrup, and cough drops.
Allowing the vine to creep up the walls of a home protected its inhabitants from baneful magic and curses.
In British folklore, ivy brings good fortune. A girl carrying ivy in her pockets would meet her future husband. Women carried ivy to aid fertility. Its pervasive use in bridal bouquets reflects its link to ensuring faithfulness in marriage, a practice that dates back to Greek priests who presented ivy wreaths to newly-married couples. Wands entwined with ivy also were used in in magical rituals and in the worship of Bacchus.
The plant was sacred to the druids, who considered it to be the female counterpart to the masculine holly. If entwined with holly at Christmas, it would bring peace between a husband and wife for the following year.
According to Maud Grieve, in her 1931 reference book, A Modern Herbal, the custom of decorating houses and churches with ivy at Christmas was forbidden by one of the early councils of the church, because of its pagan associations.
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