Betweenthismonth’scovers…

If not at the beginning of May, then certainly by its end it’s warm enough to sit outside in my garden here in Somerset, enjoying the sights and scents as all around flowers are coming into bloom. The evenings are lengthening daily and at dusk the swooping flight of swallows and house martins is replaced by the fluttering of bats hunting for insects in the night air. Swifts have also arrived after their long migration from their wintering grounds in Africa, and their characteristic screaming calls announce their presence as they wheel and dive overhead.

Hawthorn, also known as the May tree, comes into blossom at this time of year, marking the beginning of the brightest and warmest season of the year. Hawthorn has

May

long been associated with the May Day festivities - the rhyme “here we

“Andthusitpassedonfrom CandlemassuntilafterEaster, thatthemonthofMaywascome, wheneverylustyheartbeginneth toblossom,andtobringforth fruit;forlikeasherbsandtrees bringforthfruitandflourishin May,inlikewiseeverylusty heartthatisinanymannera lover,springethandflourisheth” go gathering nuts in May” originally derives from “knots” of May, ie sprigs of hawthorn blossom. In

Ireland it’s often called whitethorn due to its creamy white flowers and the writer H.E. Bates referred to the blossom most poetically as “the risen cream of all the milkiness of May time”.

Bluebells are a commonplace sight across most of the UK in late April and early May, but globally these flowers are fairly scarce with a restricted range in those countries that border Europe’s Atlantic seaboard: north-west Spain, France, the Low Countries, Ireland and of course ourselves. Indeed our mild, damp climate supports more than half the total world population of this beautiful intense blue flower. Bluebells are a classic indicator species of ancient woodland, and have attracted a wide range of folk names, including fairy bells, bellflower, wild hyacinth and fairy thimble. The English bluebell is under threat though from hybridisation with a nonnative species, the Spanish bluebell. This is a popular garden flower that has spread into the wild where it crossbreeds with our native bluebells. These hybrids have taller, straighter stems and the flowers don’t droop in the same way as those of the native variety. They also have a less powerful scent.

In modern times May 1 is celebrated as Labour Day by trade unions, socialist movements and others. It is marked by rallies and marches in countries across the world. The Labour Day celebration originated in the USA in 1867 when the working day was reduced from ten hours to eight hours with effect from this date, first in Illinois and subsequently elsewhere. In other countries trade unions and socialists began to demand a day’s holiday on 1 May - this is the original of the UK public holiday on the first Monday of May which was introduced in 1978.

This year May brings a very special date as the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty The Queen Consort will take place at Westminster Abbey on Saturday 6th May, 2023. As well as all the pomp and ceremony in London, there will be celebrations and parties up and down the country as we join together to mark this very special event.

May 19 is St Dunstan’s Day. Born here in Somerset in the early tenth century Dunstan studied at Glastonbury Abbey and became abbot there in 945.

He is the patron saint of goldsmiths and his emblem is a pair of metalworker’s tongs. According to Devonshire legend he was also a keen brewer of beer who made a pact with the Devil to ensure the destruction of the apple crop on which his rivals, the cider makers, depended. In exchange for St Dunstan’s soul, the Devil agreed to blight the apple trees with frost on 17, 18 and 19 May at the height of their blossoming.

Various Christian religious festivals also fall during May - Whitsun, Ascension and Rogation Sundays - on the last of these the clergy used to go out into the fields to bless the crops. On Rogation days also, the elders of the parish would walk the boundaries with their villagers and whip the young boys with willow wants at certain points so that they would remember the position of the parish boundary. Where the boundary was marked with a stream then the boys would be ducked. Fortunately for child welfare, these rituals are long extinct and today we can always consult an Ordnance Survey map if we need to know where boundaries fall!

May 29 is Oak Apple Day, remembering how King Charles II took shelter in an oak tree in 1651 while fleeing from Parliamentary forces after his defeat at the Battle of Worcester. After his restoration to the crown in 1660, May Day was for many years celebrated on this day.

The weather this month is variable, but as often as not, this being England after all, it is a wet month. There are many country sayings that illustrate this, such as “A leaky May and a dry June puts all in tune”, “Rain in May makes bread for the whole year,” and of course the cold weather may not be completely behind us as the well known proverb states “Cast not a clout till May be out.”