CELEBRATING WITH PLANTS, A LOOK AT HOLIDAY TRADITIONS

Leslie Fitzwater, KC Master Gardener 2002

From decorations to desserts, plants play important roles in holiday celebrations. Here’s a look at how some plants became associated with certain holidays.

A dozen red roses on St. Valentine’s Day are sure to please your lover, but do you know why roses are associated with this holiday? Cupid, that cute cherub that shoots little arrows, was the god of love to ancient Romans. According to myth, Cupid was carrying a pitcher of nectar when he spilled drops of the heavenly liquid. The nectar was so sweet that roses grew where it spilled. Since then, roses have symbolized love and are perfect symbols of St. Valentine’s Day.

After enduring long, dark winters, Celtic Druids held celebrations to welcome spring. Green, the color of hope and eternal life, was closely associated with these festivities. After Christianity arrived in the British Isles, St. Patrick’s Day celebrations replaced the ancient spring rituals. According to legend, St. Patrick used the three-leaved shamrock to teach people about the Trinity. Four leaf clovers are legendary good luck charms for those lucky enough to find them.

Easter, another celebration of spring, symbolizes rebirth, rejuvenation and resurrection. Lilies, the traditional Easter flowers, are said to symbolize life over death. Other spring flowers associated with Easter are tulips and daffodils.

May Day celebrations have taken place in Europe since medieval times. Ancient peoples often celebrated the end of winter and welcomed summer by erecting birch poles, decorating them with spring flowers and dancing around them. May Day now is celebrated as Labor Day throughout Europe and in many other countries across the globe.

Mother’s Day is a relatively new holiday that has ties to an ancient Christian legend regarding the crucifixion of Christ. At the sight of her son making his way to his crucifixion beneath the weight of the cross he was forced to carry, Mary began to cry. According to legend, where her tears fell, carnations began to grow. In 1907, carnations were chosen as the emblem for Mother’s Day to honor the mother of Christ.

Traditionally, Scottish children carved Jack-O-Lanterns from large turnips, while Irish children used either turnips or potatoes to carry around candles on All Hallow’s Eve. When immigrants came to America, their children immediately chose pumpkins to make Jack-O-Lanterns.

Harvest festivals have taken place in every culture throughout history. Thanksgiving is the American incarnation of this celebration of gratitude for a good harvest and the nourishment it brings. Although an earlier observance took place in 1619, the 1621 feast is credited as the first Thanksgiving celebration in America. Native Americans gave seeds to the Plymouth Colony and taught the early settlers to cultivate vegetables like pumpkins, squash and corn. Without their charity, the early settlement would have failed and pumpkin pie wouldn’t be on today’s Thanksgiving menu.

Many plants are associated with Christmas celebrations, the most common being the Christmas tree. Some historians believe the practice of bringing an evergreen tree indoors originated in Germany. During the Revolutionary War, Hessian troops are believed to have introduced the tradition to America.

Using evergreens to brighten the darkness of winter has been common practice throughout history. Ancient Druids celebrated the winter solstice with elaborate ceremonies using holly, mistletoe and other evergreen plants. Holly was especially prized at winter festivals because of its ability to bear fruit during the winter, when most other plants are dormant. For this reason, holly came to symbolize immortality. Mistletoe is another plant that was highly prized in ancient times. This evergreen was a symbol of hope and peace and also was considered to be a powerful aphrodisiac. Bunches of mistletoe still are hung today to encourage people to kiss beneath it.

Celebrating with plants is a wonderful way to honor age-old traditions and gives us the opportunity to explore how trees, flowers and vegetables became so closely associated with holidays. So before you trim that Christmas tree, bake that pumpkin pie or carve that Jack-O-Lantern, think of the role plants play in your life and how they add that special touch to your holiday celebrations.