Garden Superstition

Perhaps most obviously we think of gardens as symbolic of fertility, life and growth.

According to Jung, “that a garden is a place where Nature is subdued, ordered, selected and enclosed. Hence it is a symbol of the consciousness as opposed to the forest, which is a symbol of the unconsciousness, in the same way as the island is opposed to the ocean. At the same time, it is a feminine attribute because of its character as a precinct.” (Psychology And Alchemy) Probably the most notable garden throughout history is that of Eden, symbolic of paradise, sanctuary and innocence.

The garden has since history been used as a sacred place depending on the times and location. From the creation story in the Bible the first garden to be created was the Garden of Eden in which there was fruits and wild animals over which Adam and Eve were given the authority to name and take care of the garden was symbolically use to depict the perfection of God’s endowment. The garden in some instances was used to refer to mankind. In the book of the New Testament Jesus refers himself as the gardener and the garden in this case was his followers. In the garden there are various types of animals and plant as which portray the beauty that surrounds mankind as well as the significance carried by the various types of plants and animals. There was the belief that if one happened to have planted bananas in there garden, they were signs of bad lunch to seafarers, and thus bananas were forbidden on boats or any other sea vessel.

Slicing a banana within ones garden and incidentally turned out in the shape of letter” Y” it was believed that if one made their wishes at that time, they would be granted unto them. According to the medieval times it was common to burry animals in gardens as a way of appeasing the ancestors who would in turn enable one’s yield to be plenty during that season. In some cases it was believed that the first crops to be harvested from the garden was given to women who had given birth recently as it was believes to bless the yield. It was believed that if a person walked through an orchard an d then wiped their feet using a cherry leaf, it prevented one from being choked in event they fed ob fruits that were in that garden.

It was considered a sign of good luck to eat twelve grapes before midnight during the eve to the New Year while standing in the garden. In the process if one made a wish about other people’s health it would be granted. It was also believed that any woman who ate strawberries during that night would be blessed with twins in case she gave birth during that year. However, for the case of blackberries, they were believed to be a sign of devilish representation and in most places people would not eat them, moreover they were used to foretell the future of any love affair. If a woman happened to put the peel under her underwear and then greeted her lover then it was a clear sign that they would marry in future.