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ALDER, FIRE'S BARK

Where the river loses his name,where the waters lick the clayey shore,where the ground is lost in the river,there he is shedding his blood.He fought in the front line in the Battle of the Trees,he was the most fiery.Long forgotten and despised,unknown and lonely: the alder. He's so linked to water that before it rains, the back of his leaves turn white, heralding the storm.He's so close to fire that his wood makes the best charcoal. We have just left behind the Celtic month of the Alder.His wood is so resistant to water that it is used to make pillars in marshy places.Circles are traced to make invocations with its charcoal.He's a protective tree and helps control anger, repels enchantments and even cures rage.His cracked bark holds so much magic inside...that is why it is the most used part, although the leaves are also used.In Ireland it is called Comet lachta (milk keeper) as the alder wood was used to make milk pots.The crannogs of Scotland were built with alder wood and the alder is also strongly linked to the earth,where it sinks his roots.Three dyes are extracted from the alder: the red of his bark (fire), the green of his flowers (water) and the brown of the branches (earth).His leaves are astringent and are used for inflammations, burns and ulcers.The leaves moistened in a room serve as a trap for flies and insects.The green bark mixed with goose fat was used as a chest balm to relieve colds.But the most widespread use of its bark is as a dye for clothes and leather.A traveler's rest, linked to earth,fire and water,he digs his roots into the damp riverbank,struggling to survive another day in one of the darkest and shadiest places in the dense forest,watching as the water carries away a thousand stories and waiting for it to bring new ones that the river will carry to his feet.Pics by @forestinelife & @ingridkhesling


 
 
 

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