Wassailing Apple Trees
Wassailing Apple Trees
The Wassail Bowl is generally carried around just before Christmas and sometimes makes an appearance in the New Year. But in Bodmin, Cornwall, on Old Christmas Day, men in full evening-dress visit local houses singing songs, consume innumerable drinks and, when they get round to it, collect for charity. Yet another form of wassailing takes place on Old Twelfth Night - the Wassailing of Apple Trees ...
In various places in the West Country and Herefordshire, Old Twelfth Night is celebrated by people surrounding the apple trees in local orchards where cider is poured over the roots of the trees, toast (soaked in cider) is placed in the branches of the trees, a wassail song is sung, and then shotguns are fired into the branches before a drink of hot cider is taken.
The shotguns are fired to drive away any evil spirits lurking in the branches of the trees which would spoil the apple crop, and the toast is provided for the robins. A unique variation in Devon saw a small boy hoisted into the branches who had to recite, “Tit, tit, more to eat”, presumably being removed before the guns were fired. Whether he represented the birds or the spirit of the trees is not mentioned. More recent revivals have introduced a Wassail Queen, a young girl carried on a man’s shoulders who places the cider soaked toast in the branches by means of a toasting fork.
The Wassail at the back of the ‘Butchers Arms’ public house on 17 January at Carhampton, Somerset, is a typical example of such Old Twelfth Night celebrations, although the passing of time has forced some changes even there. In 1986 there was only one tree was left standing. The local housing estate, includes a Wassail Close.
In Sussex and Surrey this practice is known as ‘Howling’ and the people would shout, bang tin-trays and generally make an awful racket to drive off the evil spirits. Areas with cider making industries have encouraged, even initiated, such happenings in recent times.
This page is part of our Beginners’ Guide: British Folk Customs From Plough Monday to Hocktide.
