Holly, with its prickly leaves and red berries, is commonly associated with Christmas – but it is believed by some farmers to be a remedy for ringworm in cattle.
However, simply hanging a bough of holly in a cattle shed has been deemed by some who have carried these traditions on for generations, to not be enough.
Michael Fortune is a folklorist in Co. Wexford who has spent years collecting stories, old customs, and traditional ways of life for a living archive he has created, called folklore.ie.
Fortune once spoke with a man named Joe Parr from Hilltown in Co. Down, who told him that the use of holly was known to prevent the scabbing associated with ringworm.
However, it could not just be any holly, as Parr specified that it had to be the male holly, or ‘buck holly‘ as he called it.
“You go out and cut a bit of buck holly, put it in the shed, and you’ll never have any trouble. That’s the legend of buck holly,” Parr said.
Fortune told Agriland that he has commonly heard farmers would place the holly in a cattle shed “over where they were feeding”.
Holly
Holly trees are either male or female, and only the female can bear berries, so it is recommended to plant the female holly, along with the male, or the “buck holly” as referred to by Parr.
However, it was not only holly that was used as a method of preventing ringworm in cattle, as Fortune also encountered instances of farmers using ivy to hang in their sheds as another preventative measure.
On folklore.ie, Fortune told his readers that the saying “give her the holly” is often heard with reference to putting your foot down when driving a car or a tractor.
He believes that this saying originates from the use of a thorny holly bough being used to drive on an animal.
While its use as a remedy for ringworm in cattle may be doubtful, there is no doubt of the benefits holly brings to wildlife around the country during the winter.
From robins, blackbirds, starlings, and waxwings, holly is a food source for these birds to feed upon during the winter.
Holly trees are also prone to being grazed upon by livestock, but it is the cattle who have the advantage over smaller animals like sheep, as the leaves of the holly bush are said to be less prickly higher up in the bush.
Next spring, when farmers will be aiming to have their cattle turned out, they may remember to remove the dried out holly from the cattle sheds.
Dried out holly that was used at Christmas had a use in Fortune’s own home, as his mother used this holly in order to light an open fire on Shrove Tuesday, where pancakes would then be cooked upon.
Perhaps this is a more reliable use of the holly than in a cattle shed, but when Fortune confirmed that he had yet to hear of any scientific evidence that confirmed the success of hanging holly in a shed to prevent ringworm in cattle, he said he knows that it is still practiced “in every county in the country.
“Things like these are a light load to carry. It’s like insurance. You mightn’t believe in it, but you put it on all the same.”