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Gooseberry

Keywords
Anticipation Challenges, Comfort, Gains, Success

Historical Background and Folklore
Gooseberry is popular for jams, sauces and dressings for stuffed fowl. Yellow gooseberries are used to make a sparkling wine. In Scotland it is know as grozet from the Gaelic word grosied. Common names included “hairy grape” and “goosegogs”. In Germany, it is called Jansbeere, which means John’s berry, and was named for the feast of St. John, which took place at about the time gooseberries ripened.

Gooseberries have been used to produce a sweet strong wine-like ale since Medieval times. The brewer, Tibbie Shiels who lived in the Scottish borders region, became well known for his Green Grozet. Also in Scotland, a type of bogeyman called Awd Goggie was said to guard the gooseberries until they were ripe. Children were told to stay clear of the bushes to avoid being kidnapped by him.

The Egyptian goddess Bastet is frequently described as having gooseberry-green eyes. Hindu legends mention water tasting sweeter after eating gooseberries. In England a chaperon was called a “gooseberry” because it was a standard ploy to pretend to pick gooseberries while keeping an eye on the young people. “Old Gooseberry” is an alternate name for the devil.

Associations
Element: water
Energy: feminine
Goddesses: Bastet, Jal Devi, Morrigan
Gods: Cernunnos, Krishna, Shiva, Vishnu

Colors: yellow, white, lavender
Celestial Body: Venus
Ogham Character: Ifin/Iphin – Letters: IO
Miscellaneous: aids in getting through difficult times; sabbat: Samhain

© Llewellyn - Whispers from the Woods


For more information, refer to the full text in Whispers from the Woods.


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A Calendar of Trees and Seasonal Rituals

The Trees

      
Alder Elm Juniper Pine
Apple Fir Laurel Reed
Ash Gooseberry Linden Rowen
Aspen Gorse Locust Spindle Tree
Bamboo Hackberry Magnolia Spruce
Beech Hawthorn Maple Sycamore
Birch Hazel Mesquite Vine
Blackthorn Hearther Mimosa Walnut
Cedar Hickory Mistletoe Willow
Cherry Holly Myrtle Witch Hazel
Chestnut Honeysuckle Oak Yew
Cypress Hornbeam Olive  
Elder Ivy Palm  
       
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