Wands by Tree: About White Ash Tree Wood

Thursday, July 19, 2012

About White Ash Tree Wood

White Ash (Fraxinus Americana) is sometimes referred to as baseball bat wood. The wood is white, strong, straight-grained, and the tree is in the olive family. White ash is the largest of the ashes native to North America and is known for being tough. It does not break under large amounts of strain yet is quite light weight. Being one of the toughest and most elastic woods has led to its use in Native American spears, bows, clubs, and snow shoes since time immemorial.

The Metaphysical Ash

The magic influence of the ash tree reaches far back into time, and the properties are numerous. Ash wands or staves are good for healing, general magic, solar magic, to attract lightning, and is used to remove spells or hexes. The ancient World Tree (Yggdrasil) of Norse mythology is commonly thought to have been an ash tree, and the first man formed from the same. Being an herb of the sun, Ash brings light into the hearth at the Winter Solstice. The wood has traditionally been burned during the Yule holiday for prosperity of the household as the Yule Log. Celtic druid wands were often made of ash and decorated with symbols and sigils. The handle for a witches broom is traditionally made from ash wood, purportedly allowing witches to ride through the air.

A bit of ash may be worn or kept in your home to protect from general evil or witchcraft, plus venomous animals too. Save the stripped off bark of ash and use for protection or prosperity spells, sea rituals, and health spells. An amulet to protect from drowning and vampires can be made by carving or binding two twigs together into a solar cross (Brigid's Cross). An ash staff or wand placed over the door wards off negative influences. It has also been said that tools with handles made of this wood will enable a person to do more work than could be done with tools whose handles were not of ash; hence the reason that ash wood is generally used as tool handles.

Specially Gathered Ash Wood: In addition to the powerful metaphysical uses for White Ash, many of the wands I craft hold the added power of hurricane winds and the energy of the peaking Full Moon. They were harvested and felled during the September 2008 Hurricane Ike Full Moon (USA). The mother tree still lives, and was quite healthy when these wands were harvested from a large branch that was twisted off by the high winds of a most unusual wind storm event. The wood harvested has never touched the ground. The tree fell just before the peak of the Moon; at 99%, and was harvested with the Moon at 100% full. My husband and myself worked swiftly to stay within the Full Moon time, but enjoyed our blessings with playful fun, hoping to pass that good energy along with the wands.

referenced
*tree: white ash. Photograph. Britannica Online for Kids. Web. 19 July 2012. <http://kids.britannica.com/comptons/art-126771>.
*Illustration of white ash (Fraxinus Americana) http://ian.umces.edu/imagelibrary/displayimage-6603.html
*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraxinus_americana
*http://www.answers.com/topic/ash-5
*http://www.angelfire.com/de/poetry/Flowers/Ash.html
* experience and verbal lore

--Tree Pruitt

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Handmade Wooden Wands

Welcome! The wood that I craft my wands from is always ethically gathered, such as those that the wind has brought down or that come from general yard maintenance; no trees are ever harmed for harvesting. I do not use power tools; all of the work is done by hand. I only use branches and twigs that are free of disease, and not previously "dead", so that the wood remains strong. Because they come from Nature no two of my handmade wands can ever be the same. All of the spiritual ritual tools that I craft are worked on in a positive environment with a ritual mind-set using the highest quality materials possible for heirloom quality authenticity.

What's A Wand

Choose a wand based upon the feelings inside you; it can be a tool, a partner, and a friend. A magick wand is typically made of wood and is a stick usually no longer than 24" inches. A "stave" is a word used to describe a wand blank -- one that hasn't been crafted yet. In its most basic sense a wand is used to direct energy raised during ceremonial magick and religious ritual. Though usually one continuous piece of wood, wands are crafted from many different types of materials and have different parts.

The tip that points energy out of a wand -- sometimes capped with a crystal -- is the projection end; when directed with intent it projects the energy outward. The other end that is gripped like a handle is known as the pommel. Sometimes the pommel may be capped with a crystal or gemstone too, but the purpose is to hold energy until released by the wielder of the wand. Some wands may have a core of special ingredients or a wrap of copper wire to aide in conducting energy. Wands can be used for many different purposes, and indeed a person might choose to own several, such as having one for healing ceremonies and another for general Circle casting or wands that correspond to holidays. Wands that are not used on a regular basis should be stored in such a way as to protect them from not only dust and debris but also from any ambient energy influences.