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Enjoy this curated selection of theme-related dances for celebrations and holidays, or find a dance associated with a special calendar day, or EVEN your own birthday!
Oct 9
October's Birthflower
Marigold
Other Scottish Country Dances for this Day
Today's Musings, History & Folklore
"Look: the constant marigold
Springs again from hidden roots.
Baffled gardener, you behold
New beginnings and new shoots ..."
~ Marigolds, Robert Graves
Happy October birthdays—with October’s cheerful birth flower, the marigold!
Marigolds have a rather tangled history. Marigolds and calendulas have frequently been mixed up in botanical literature, and over the centuries they have inherited some of each other’s folklore, symbolism, and traditional uses. Even plants once commonly called “marigolds” were not necessarily the flowers we would identify by that name today.
One of them, the corn marigold (Chrysanthemum segetum, now usually Glebionis segetum), was apparently such a troublesome weed in medieval Scotland that a law attributed to the reign of Alexander II imposed a remarkably Scottish penalty: allow even one plant to go to seed among the crops, and the offending farmer could be fined a sheep! 🐏
So celebrate October birthdays with this 40-bar birth-flower namesake jig, for 3 couples in a 4 couple set devised by James B Cosh which includes “Marigold reels”—a variation on “dance to each corner and set,” but with the setting omitted.
And in October, the marigold makes a particularly appropriate flower to wear: all those glowing oranges and golds look as though they were designed especially for Hallowe’en.
Best of all, modern Scottish Country Dancers may wear them with impunity. Your sheep will not be confiscated. 🕺 💃 🤪 🧡 💛 🧡 🏵️ 🏵️ 🏵️ 🎃 🎉 🐏 🐏 🐏
Marigold
The Marigold is the birth flower of October.
Calendula officinalis (also called pot marigold, ruddles, common marigold, garden marigold, English marigold, or Scottish marigold) is probably native to southern Europe. Ornamental varieties range from pale yellow to orange-red. However, there are many flowers that are known by this name from other families.Marigolds and calendulas are mixed up in botanical literature and have inherited each other's folklore and usages.
Pot marigold florets are edible and are often used to add color to salads or added to dishes as a garnish and in lieu of saffron.
Ancient cultures recognized and used the healing properties of calendula. The flowers have long been applied to cuts and wounds to stop bleeding, prevent infection and speed healing. Calendula was used in both the American Civil War and World War I on the battlefields in open wounds as anti-hemorrhagic and antiseptic, or as dressing wounds to promote healing.
Marigolds were also thought to have magical qualities and figure in prominently in country folklore. The Welsh believed that if marigolds were not open early in the morning, a storm was imminent. Water made from marigolds was thought to induce psychic visions of fairies if rubbed on the eyelids.
Marigold flowers were added to pillows to encourage prophetic or psychic dreams, especially on St. Luke's Day, October 18th, as a form of flower divination, floramancy.
For a recipe incorporating the beautiful colors of the last of summer with calendula marigold, click the biscuits below for a thyme, lemon, and marigold Scottish shortbread.
Click the dance cribs or description below to link to a printable version of the dance!
