Early August sees the start of Lughnasa, the late summer festival celebrating the ripening of berries and nuts in the forest and the first harvest in the fields.
Lughnasa is named after the Irish hero, Lugh, who many think of as a sun god. In later times, Lughnasa was named Lammas (‘loaf-mass’) in reference to the beginning of harvest.
In farmlands all over Europe, it was believed that the spirit of the corn lived amongst the crop, and so was made homeless by the harvest. It was the custom to fashion the last sheaf of wheat into a corn ‘dolly’, so that the spirit of the corn could spend the winter in this home, until the ‘dolly’ was ploughed back into the land in the new season.
In forest glades and edge-lands, wild grass, rather than cultivated grain, is in seed, and can be used to make a simple ‘dolly’. Here, in this extract from The Children’s Forest, we show you how to make your own Plaited Grass Dolly:
YOU WILL NEED
Three long stalks of grass, with pleasing seed heads
Elastic band
A length of red ribbon (optional)
TO MAKE
1. Tie the three straws together under the seed-heads with an elastic band. The three stalks will be plaited together, using the same type of plait you would use to plait hair. Spread out the straws, so that one straw is on the left and two are on the right.
2. From the group of two, bring the outer straw and lay it on the inside of the straw on the left.
3. Repeat this rhythm, bringing the outer straw from the group of two over the middle straw, to the inside.
4. When you have completed the plait, hold the ends of all three straws together, and loop the plait around and down
5. Securing the ends into the elastic band, to create a loop of plaited grass stalks above the bunch of seed heads.
6. If you wish to, on top of the elastic band you can tie a red ribbon in a bow.
(Further information and inspiration on this traditional harvest craft can be found at the website of the Guild of Straw Craftsmen, strawcraftsmen.co.uk.)
This extract is taken from The Children’s Forest: Stories & songs, wild food, crafts & celebrations by Dawn Casey, Anna Richardson and Helen d’Ascoli. Many of the songs from The Children’s Forest are now available online, so you can sing along even if you don’t read music.
