186 Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard
tribes applied that name to the next Moon.
Snow Moon: Because the heaviest snow usually
falls during this month, native tribes of the north
and east most often called February’s full Moon
the Snow Moon. Some tribes also referred to this
Moon as the Hunger Moon, because harsh weather
conditions in their areas made hunting very
difficult.
Worm Moon: As the temperature begins to warm
and the ground begins to thaw, earthworm casts
appear, heralding the return of the robins. The more
northern tribes knew this as the Crow Moon, when
the cawing of crows signaled the end of Winter;
or the Crust Moon, because the snow cover
becomes crusted from thawing by day and freezing
at night. Sap Moon, marking the time of tapping
maple trees, is another variation.
Pink Moon: This name came from the herb moss
pink, or wild ground phlox, which is one of the
earliest widespread flowers of the spring. Other
names include Sprouting Grass Moon, Egg Moon,
and among coastal tribes, Fish Moon, because this
was the time that the shad swam upstream to
spawn.
Flower Moon: In most areas, flowers are abundant
everywhere during this time. Other names include
the Full Corn Planting Moon, or the Milk Moon.
Strawberry Moon: This name was universal to
every Algonquin tribe. Because the relatively short
season for harvesting strawberries comes each year
during the month of June, the full Moon that occurs
during that month was named for the strawberry.
Buck Moon: July is normally the month when the
new antlers of buck deer push out of their
foreheads in coatings of velvety fur. It was also
often called the Hay Moon or Thunder Moon,
because thunderstorms are most frequent during
this time.
Sturgeon Moon: The fishing tribes are given credit
for the naming of this Moon, because sturgeon, a
large fish of the Great Lakes and other major bodies
of water, were most readily caught during this
month. A few tribes knew it as the Red Moon
because, as the Moon rises, it appears reddish
through any sultry haze. It was also called the
Green Corn Moon or Grain Moon.
Fruit or Barley Moon: The names Fruit and
Barley were reserved only for those years when
the Harvest Moon is very late in September,
Harvest Moon: This is the full Moon that occurs
closest to the Autumn Equinox. In two years out
of three, the Harvest Moon comes in September,
but in some years it occurs in October. At the peak
of harvest, farmers can work late into the night by
the light of this Moon. The chief Native Americanstaples corn, pumpkins, squash, beans, and wild
rice are now ready for gathering.
Hunter’s Moon: With the leaves falling and the
deer fattened, it is time to hunt. Because the fields
have been reaped, hunters can easily see fox and
the animals that have come out to glean.
Beaver Moon: This was the time to set beaver traps
before the swamps froze, to ensure a supply of
warm furs. It is sometimes also referred to as the
Frosty Moon.
Cold Moon; or Long Night Moon: Long Night
Moon is a doubly appropriate name because the
midwinter night is indeed long, and because the
Moon is above the horizon for a long time. The
midwinter full Moon rides high across the sky
because it is opposite a low Sun.Lesson 9: Calendar of the Trees
According to poet Robert Graves (The White Goddess,
1948) the Celtic Druids designed the world’s most
perfect calendar. They divided the year into not twelve,
but thirteen months of exactly 28 days each. These
added up to a total of 364 days, and one intercalary
(“called between”) day was added each year right after
Winter Solstice to reset the calendar. This day was
considered to be outside of time, between the worlds.
Whatever one did on that day didn’t count in the “real
world.” Every four years, a second intercalary day
was inserted after Summer Solstice, for Leap Year.
This meant that the dates of the days of the week never
changed from month-to-month or year-to-year, and a
single month page was all you needed forever.
Each month was named for a consonant of the
Druidic Ogham alphabet, with some of them doing
double-duty. Because the first three consonants in
order of months were Beth (B), Luis (L) and Nion
(N), this is also sometimes called the Beth-Luis-Nion
calendar, just as we refer to the alphabet (from the
first two letters in Greek: Alpha and Beta). Each of
these 13 months was assigned a tree (two trees in a
couple of cases, plus vines and reeds)—often based
on the seasons when that tree (or vine, or reed) first
puts out leaves, flowers, or fruit. The five vowels were
also assigned trees but were not included as months
of the calendar. Rather, they were designated as fingers
on the hand. These were AILM (A) Silver Fir or Elm,
ONN (O) Furze or Broom, UR (U) Heather,
EADHA (E) White Poplar, and IDHE (I) Yew.
Graves’s version of the Tree Calendar is his own
invention, used by many magickal folk today. There
is a Celtic Tree alphabet, and he basically took that
alphabet and turned it into a calendar. Here is a listing
of his Tree months, along with the ogham letters and
drawings of the leaves of each. (See their positions
on the Magick Circle Mandala on page 131.)- Rites.p65 186 1/15/2004, 9:09 AM