The Willow tree is one of the seven sacred Irish trees and is a sacred tree to Druids. Symbolises regeneration as cut willows always resprout. Willow branches are said to be the best for divining water, channelling Earth energy, and to find lost objects. Willow is used for enhancement of psychic abilities.

Willow is the Fifth month of the Celtic Tree calendar, 15th April – 12th May.  If you are a Willow sign, you are ruled by the moon, and so your personality holds hands with many of the mystical aspects of the lunar realm. This means you are highly creative, intuitive and intelligent. You have a keen understanding of cycles, and you inherently know that every situation has a season. This gives you a realistic perspective of things, and causes you to be more patient than most tree signs. With your intelligence comes a natural ability to retain knowledge and you often impress your company with the ability to expound on subjects from memory. Willow Celtic tree astrology signs are bursting with potential, but tend to hold themselves back for fear of appearing flamboyant or overindulgent. It is your powers of perception that ultimately allow your true nature to shine, and what leads you to success in life. Willow signs join well with the Birch and the Ivy.

Planet: Moon

Element: Water

Symbolism: Resonance and Harmony

Stone: Moonstone

Birds: Hawk, Snowy Owl

Color: Silver

Deity: Persephone, Hecate, Artemis, Selene, Luna, Diana, Brigit.

Sabbat: Beltane

The leaves and bark of the willow tree have been mentioned in ancient texts from Assyria, Sumer and Egypt as a remedy for aches and fever. In Ancient Greece the physician Hippocrates wrote about its medicinal properties, and the tree is held sacred, also, to Minerva, the ancient Great Goddess whose bird, the Wryneck, nests only in the Willow.

The willow is one of the four species associated with the Jewish festival of Sukkot, or the Feast of Tabernacles, cited in Leviticus 23:40. Willow branches are also used during the synagogue service on Hoshana Rabbah, the seventh day of Sukkot.

Native Americans across the Americas relied on it as a staple of their medical treatments. It provides temporary pain relief. Salicin is metabolized into salicylic acid in the human body, and is a precursor of aspirin.

In China, some people carry willow branches with them on the day of their Tomb Sweeping or Qingming Festival. Willow branches are also put up on gates and/or front doors, which they believe help ward off the evil spirits that wander on Qingming. Legend states that on Qingming Festival, the ruler of the underworld allows the spirits of the dead to return to earth. Since their presence may not always be welcome, willow branches keep them away. Taoist witches also use a small carving made from willow wood for communicating with the spirits of the dead.

In Japanese tradition, the willow is associated with ghosts. It is popularly supposed that a ghost will appear where a willow grows.

In English folklore, a willow tree is believed to be quite sinister, capable of uprooting itself and stalking travelers.