If on the 4th December 2019 marks the anniversary of the name day of Saint Barbara, a hustle and bustle can be observed in the field, forest and garden. Crowds of folk folk are on the way to cut branches from fruit trees or forsythia bushes and put them in water. On this day of remembrance a traditional custom is celebrated, at the climax of which on Christmas Eve the cut Barbara branches are in full bloom. The popular ritual is associated with an abundance of secular and religious meanings. Read all the information about the Barbaratag 2019 with tips and tricks on how to make a Barbara branch bloom.
Cutting the barbara branch - instructions for the process on barbara day 2019
Although there are numerous legends and myths about the Barbaratag, the actual course of the custom is based on a firmly cemented protocol that has been handed down since the Middle Ages. The deadline is the 4th of each year. December, the liturgical feast day of Saint Barbara. On this day you cut branches from spring-blooming trees and put them in water so that they are in full bloom by Christmas time. All questions about the specific procedure will be given a well-founded answer below.
Which types of wood are suitable?
Barbara branches are traditionally cut on cherry trees. The branches of other fruit trees, such as apple, plum, hazelnut, elder, almond and horse chestnut, can also be considered. Forsythia and gorse are also among the classics for the cut on Barbaratag. Japanese quince, cornel cherry or other immigrant flowering trees serve as modern versions, in order to extract Barbara branches here.
What time of the day do you cut?
The custom prescribes that a branch of Barbara only bears flowers if it is on the 4th of May. December is cut under special conditions. A branch cut before sunrise is ideal. If you miss this time, you can use scissors during the ringing of Vespers when the church bells call for evening prayer.
What should you watch out for when cutting?
Choose a healthy branch that shows no signs of disease or pest infestation. Furthermore, it should have as many buds as possible. These are recognizable as slight bumps under the bark. If you run your finger over the branch, you can feel the sleeping eyes. Please use freshly sharpened scissors whose blades you have disinfected with alcohol. Unclean cutting tools
and frayed cut wounds pose a risk for the tree that it will have to pay for cutting Barbara branches with an infection by pathogenic agents.Tip: The buds on the fruit trees are equipped with a natural inhibition so that they do not sprout prematurely. In order for a Barbara branch to bloom, it should be shortly before the 4th December lived a night below freezing. If a branch of Barbara did not get a cold stimulus before cutting, place it in the freezer of the refrigerator for 6 to 12 hours.
Put Barbara branch in water - how to do it right?
Hold the fresh, healthy branch in your hands, cut it diagonally at the end of the shoot. In this way, the conductor tracks are exposed over a larger area than after a straight cut. In this way, water and nutrients can be better transported. Please do not tap the end of the branch with a hammer, as is sometimes mistakenly practiced in customs. It has been proven that the damage to the fabric promotes the premature development of rot and already destroys hopes for a Christmas bloom. How to proceed:
- Pour lukewarm water into a clean vase
- Set the barbara branch upright
- To sprout, place in a slightly tempered room until the buds swell
- Then set it up in a bright, warm location
- Change the water and clean the vase every 3 days
Avoid a place in close proximity to an active radiator or stove. So that the buds do not dry out under the influence of dry heating air, spray the branch every 2 days with lime-free, lukewarm water. If the interface at the end of the branch turns brown, cut a little so that the supply lines do not clog. With this care program, experience has shown that blooming Barbara branches last until Epiphany.
In this sequence, a shortened change from winter to spring is simulated, whereupon the inhibitors in the flowering branch are broken down. Since a branch of Barbara now thinks it is in spring, it lets its buds swell and bloom.
Tip: There are numerous peasant rules for Barbara Day, such as: If Barbara walks in clover, the Christ Child comes in the snow. Saint Barbara in the snow, brings a lot next year
Custom is based on the Barbara legend
The tradition of the Barbara branches has been celebrated since the Middle Ages in memory of Saint Barbara. Venerated as the patroness of the dying, she is one of the 14 helpers in need, a group of popular saints in the Catholic faith.
Legend has it that Barbara was born the daughter of a pagan and very wealthy Turk in Nicomedia. It was so beautiful that Dioskuros locked his daughter in a tower when he went on a journey. This measure should serve their safety, preserve their chastity, and prevent inappropriate marriage. With the incarceration, however, her father could not prevent his daughter from converting to Christianity. Barbara was not only beautiful, but also had a sharp mind. She corresponded with the famous theologian Origen, who transmitted his answers through the priest Valentinus. It was he who baptized Barbara. As a visible sign of her new faith in the Trinity, she had a third window built into the tower.
When her father returned and saw the extra window, he confronted Barbara and was appalled by her conversion and baptism. In the following years he made numerous attempts to dissuade his daughter from her Christian faith. He had to realize, however, that Barbara did not deviate from her creed. Ultimately, the enraged Dioskuros handed his daughter over to the persecution of Christians in 306. Barbara fled and hid in a crevice. Here she was discovered by a shepherd who revealed her whereabouts to the captors who took her prisoner. The shepherd was turned into a dung beetle by God as punishment for his betrayal. Other traditions say that the shepherd was turned to stone and his sheep turned into locusts.
On the orders of her father, Barbara was imprisoned to renounce Christianity under torture. On the way to the dungeon, a cherry twig caught in her clothes. In her cell, Barbara put this branch in a jug of water. On the day of her martyrdom, the buds unfolded even though it was the middle of winter. Then Barbara is said to have exclaimed: You appeared as if dead. Now you have blossomed into a more beautiful life. It will be the same for me in death. I will blossom into a better life forever.
Thereupon the legend continues that Barbara appeared to Jesus Christ and received a promise from him. This states that no Christian who calls on her as his intercessor before God dies suddenly without first having received the holy sacraments. Therefore she was accepted as patroness of the dying in the community of the 14 emergency helpers.
Dioskuros knew no mercy, but is said to have beheaded his daughter himself after all. The punishment for this outrage was immediate, when he was struck by lightning.
Barbara branch as an oracle - meaning between belief and superstition
The custom on St. Barbara's Day was mentioned in writing as early as the early Middle Ages. Since then, cutting Barbara branches has developed into an oracle custom that is associated with a variety of meanings, depending on regional folk beliefs. The following overview presents the most common interpretations in more detail:
Harvest oracle
In earlier times, farmers made a direct relationship between the number of flowers and the harvest yield in the coming year. A richly blooming branch of Barbara made the whole farming family confident that there would be a rich harvest next year. If, on the other hand, only a few buds develop into a flower, there are bad premonitions of a meager harvest.
Fertility Oracle
Another meaning also comes from it
Oracle of love
When young girls wanted to know whether their secret love was being fulfilled, a branch of Barbara served as a medium. The name of the loved one was carved into the bark and the branch was placed in water. Buds blooming by Christmas meant their love would be returned and a wedding was coming up soon.
Marriage oracle
In Bavaria and Austria, Barbarazweige traditionally act as an oracle to determine whether the marriageable virgins will come under the hood in the next year. If several admirers are waiting, each branch is given a name tag and placed in the vase. Which branch bears the most flowers is considered the most promising candidate for engagement or marriage.
Lucky oracle
In various regions of Germany and Austria, families put a whole bouquet of Barbara twigs in the vase on Barbara Day. Each branch has a family member's name tag on it. The branches will be watched with eagle eyes until Christmas. Whose branch blossoms first will be the family's lucky child next year.
Lotto oracle
Since blooming branches of Barbara are always regarded as a lucky charm, lottery players use the custom to predict the winning numbers. If you take it very carefully, you put 49 branches in the water on St. Barbara's Day, provided with number cards. The first 6 flower branches represent the winning numbers for the next year.
Sacred meaning
Beyond all superstition, the blossomed branches are symbolic of Jesus Christ, the scion from the root of Jesse. Just as a bud on the Barbara branch bursts its tight shell, so the believer is awakened to new life through the birth of the Redeemer.
Special form barbara tree
For a long time it was customary to cut not only individual branches but also complete leading branches with numerous side branches on St. Barbara's Day. They were placed in the living room like little trees so that they would bloom at Christmas. Furthermore, it was a tradition to decorate a Barbara tree for Christmas with apples, candy or gilded nuts. When this custom got out of hand and caused considerable damage to fruit growing as a result of this looting, it was adopted in the 18th century. Century banned in most regions by the margrave. Since the poor rural population did not use valuable fruit trees, but spruce and fir trees, some historians consider the barbara tree to be the forerunner of the Christmas tree.
Conclusion
At 4. December 2019, a traditional custom is celebrated that has long been forgotten. On this day, Christians celebrate the remembrance day of Saint Barbara, a martyr of the 4th Century, one of the 14 helpers in need. Before sunrise or during the ringing of Vespers, the branches of spring-blooming trees are cut off and placed in lukewarm water. Each branch of Barbara is accompanied with the hope that it will bloom for Christmas. The friends of tradition derive numerous secular and religious meanings from the number of its flowers, the most common of which can be found here. If you want to slow down your fast-paced everyday life with flowering branches at Christmas time, you should go to Barbara Day 2019 not to be missed to make a Barbara branch according to the old fashion and these instructions cut.
