This is our featured "Tree of the Month". Here are a few interesting things I found, to get us started.

Fresh rowan berry juice is used as a laxative, gargle for sore throats, inflamed tonsils, hoarseness, and source of Vitamins A and C. Rowan berry jam is a remedy for diarrhea. Infusion of berries may treat hemmorhoids. The bark can be an astringent for loose bowels and vaginal irritations. Rowan is said to also be good for eye irritations, spasmic pains in the uterus, heart and bladder problems, neuralgia, and gout.

Traditionally rowan berry jelly is served with game. Berries can also substitute for coffee beans, and are common for flavoring liquers, cordials or ale, and making country wine.

Rowan comes from the Old Norse name for this tree, raun or rogn which probably refers to the red foliage and berries. Some of the nicknames for Rowan are: Delight of the eye, Mountain Ash, Quicken Tree, Roan Tree, Rune Tree, Wicken Tree, Witch Wood and Witchen tree.

The name "mountain ash" is confusing. Rowan leaves look a lot like ash tree leaves but rowan is really closer to the apples and hawthorn trees which are in the rose family. The European Rowan is Sorbus aucuparia.

The wood of the rowan tree is one of the traditional woods for druid staves. It is a good walking-stick wood. The branches are popular as dowsing rods.

There's a special magic attributed to the "flying rowan" which grows from seeds deposited by bird droppings that land in the fork of another tree and cause the rowan to grow out of it as an epiphyte. These rowans are considered especially powerful as protection against all kinds of sorcery.

http://choosemagic.wordpress.com/
wikipedia
http://www.treesforlife.org.uk/tfl.rowan.html