There is a spell I might try out from a spell book I have.It is an oak tree strength spell.There are a lot of oak trees where I live.
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I picked this stick from the ground at a park I brought my son to many months ago. It is perfect. I have a wand I bought but donāt feel a connection to it like I do this stick! So I am working on sanding and maybe staining itā¦ then deciding how Iād like to decorate it. After itās finished Iāll be using Scott Cunninghamās Wand Consecration ritual! Iām stoked.
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For this challenge I will be repurposing a piece a walnut trim Iāve had for some time, and craving it into a wand. ( I will add a picture when Iām done)
The colours of walnut wood differ depend on the part of the tree it comes from.
Sapwood or the outer most part of a tree ranges from yellow and grey to nearly creamy white.
Heartwood or the inner most part of a tree has very vibrant colours ranging from light browns and dark browns with some grays, reddish rays, purplish hues, any with dark streaks. Walnut also sun bleaches meaning it gets little over time as itās exposed to uv rays.
Making it great for transformative Magicks.
Walnut is that it is allelopathic, meaning that it produces a chemical called juglone that oxidizes in soil and prevents certain kinds of other plants from growing under or near it.
Which makes it good for banishing work.
Itās solid, durable, stable, and robust but not heavy with good shock resistance making it great for building with.
Easy to work for carving and turning and glues and nails very well and has decent bending qualities.
I think that should make it good for bindings and grounding.
Now for a few extracts from druidgarden.wordpress.com article on Walnut:
[Walnut is considered a āmasculineā tree associated with the element of fire and the sun. Culpepper, in his Complete Herbal, writes, āThis is a plant of the sun. Let the fruit of it be gathered accordingly, which as the most virtual whilst green, before it shells.ā
Walnuts are also used to āfall out of loveā; Yronwode in her Hoodoo Herb and Root Magic describes a ritual where you make a tea of nine black walnuts (husk and all) boiled in three quarts of water; boiling it till the water evaporates down to 1 quart. You bathe in this water, renouncing ties to the former love, and then throw the water out at a crossroads or against the tree.]
I also found several sources sighting healing and protective qualities but that was more for the nuts than the tree itself.
I had a hard time finding information about Walnut trees in magic rather than walnuts but apparently they can be pressed into oil that is edible and I was wondering if anyone had tried using it as
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After the last storm that came through I had a lot of yardwork to do. While cleaning up I took notice of how many branches I was collecting. I put them aside knowing that the energy from the storm imbibed with something special and these branches would be needed soon.
Fast forward to this challenge! The tree that the branches fell from is a Privet. Iām not sure of the magical properties. I thought it was an Elderberry for the longest time because of the fruit it produces.
To learn a little about this tree I visited Good Witches Homestead and what I learned was our tree was brought to North America by European settlers. Some use the trees to make animal topiaries - I donāt plan on it 
The berries have been used as a laxative, for headaches, and made into mouthwashes. Tess Whitehurst says the Privet Tree can assist in communication and healing arguments - perfect for a household protection symbol (and Mercury Retrograde!)
I used the branches to create a Brighidās Cross. Imbolc is coming up and I plan to praise our Brighid like crazy. I added some flowers in honor of the season and will change them out as the Sabbats come and go.
I am not terribly crazy about how she is hanging. I will let my husband work his magic later this afternoon. Otherwise, for my first witchy craft such as this I am pretty pleased with how it turned out. I think as she lives and grows our cross will become more and more beautiful.
Oh Mother Brighid, I love you, Thank you.
Beautiful Privet tree, Thank you for your branches
The creation we have made together is priceless to my heart
Please bless my home with your healing energies,
and help me welcome Goddess Brighid to our home.
Hope you all have the most blessed of days. 
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Weekly Witchy Challenge Entry: So, about the branches that I picked up a few weeks ago and placed on my porch were gifted to me by a 300 year old oak tree in my backyard. This beautiful tree is sacred to me. This tree was struck by lightning and then badly damaged by a house fire about 1987. I bought the property in 1993 and the scars on that poor old tree were deep and I was afraid that I would lose it. Fast forward 29 years later and the scars are still there, but hardly noticeable at all. I was picking up branches and I found a branch that will make a perfect staff with a little work. So, according to my "Llewellyns Complete Book of Correspondences By Sandra Kynes, the Issues, Intentions and Powers of the Oak are abundance, the afterlife, authority, awareness, battle/war, beauty, blessings, confidence, consecrate/bless, consciousness, control, courage, death, defense, discipline, enchantment, endurance, energy, fertility, freedom, generosity, healing, increase, independence, inspiration, justice, knowledge, life, longevity, loyalty, luck, money, power, shamanic work, spirits, stability, strength, success, warmth, wealth, weather (lightning), well being, wisdom, witches/witchcraft, youth. I will work on it this weekend and show you before and after pictures.
I had also picked up some sticks that I thought would make good wands, but something happened to me today. I have a Crepe Myrtle tree that I planted when I first moved to the property in 1993. I was looking at it because it has some branches that have twisted together and they are beautiful. I found a branch that was dead and came right off the tree(not one of the twisted). I am going to make a wand out of that branch. According to the above book, the Issues, Intentions and Powers of the Crepe Myrtle are: the afterlife, communication, creativity, crossroads, cycles, death, emotions, endings, favor, fertility, heartbreak, innocence, life, love, luck, marriage, money, the otherworld/underworld, passion, peace, prosperity, release, sorrow, wealth, youth. So, I will do before and after pictures of that too.
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The branch was long so I cut it into 4 pieces. The top one is how it looked before sanding. The sanded one turned out beautiful. Itās an ongoing project. Tomorrow I will stain and decorate and start on the staff
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Garnet,
Thank you for all your help finding the sacred trees!
Jeannie
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I have made some smudge sticks from a cedar tree in my yard. I donāt really like cutting on a tree and felt guilty. I havenāt used them yet but they smell so good without burning it.
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That will make a perfect wand. I love the way itās curved!
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I have a whole album of tree huggin
I could just flood this with 
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Ok so this may be a little bonkersā¦ even by my standards which is saying a lotā¦ butsies I had a lightening bolt moment this while I was meddling in the mundane and dusting my bedroom.
As I was dusting I was listening to Green Day. My absolute favorite band. And bam it just hit meā¦ my drum stick. Itās wood. 
Today was the first time that I have put my music on since I broke up with Mitch.
I have been lucky enough to see Green Day twice in concert. 09/12/2009 - I was at the back of the mosh pit.
Butā¦ 30/04/2017 - This is truly one of the greatest nights of my life. Where for once Mitch did not matter and even he couldnāt make me miserable that night. Not whiIe I was focused on those boys on stage. I was so happy that night. I had a total fan girl moment when I saw them come on stage I literally burst into tears for a few seconds. I sang my scrappy little heart out and had the biggest smile on my face the whole night.
I made it to the very front of the mosh pit and I was given thisā¦
TrĆ© Coolās drum stick that he actually drummed with that night. I had photos from that night printed and I got it framed and it hangs in my bedroom. Every time I look at it, it brings a smile to my face. And I remember that night. Just as these little thoughts were running through my mind like a little mouse in a wheel the line āThere is nothing wrong with me. This is how Iām supposed to beā from the Green Day song Jesus of Suburbia played at just just right moment. 
Maybe this was a bit of a magical message to remind me that that piece of wood hanging on my wall is a symbol of a moment in my life of pure happiness.
I know theyāll never see this butā¦ Billie Joe Armstrong, TrĆ© Cool and Mike Dirnt. Thank you for coming into my life though your music. You more than once quite literally have saved me from the darkest moments of my life. 
To me this little bit of wood is sacred on so many levels. It is one of my most treasured non-furry possessions.
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For a charming read about wood and wands, try:
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Linda, that branch is beautiful!
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That is AWESOME!
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Thank you @Garnet. My husband put it in a drill and took a piece of sandpaper and had it sanded in about 10 seconds. I have to wait for the Amazon truck before I can finish it. Lol!
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@jessica72 funny you should mention Green Day, For the last couple of days I have been listening to some of their songs (I have a playlist on Spotify called Only Ma because my kids donāt always like my music. I listen to everything from the Andrews Sisters to Marilyn Manson & everything in betweenā¦ a bit eclectic. ANYWAY a lot has come from listening to them & other music from the time that was a few of my favorites. I have seen Green Day in concert once at a River Rave that was basically an all-day concert with multiple stages & multiple bands. It was put on by a radio station (I know Iām dating myself here, before mp3 & Bluetooth & satelliteā¦ good old radio & tapes & CDs)
@Ostara great job with your wands too & the information on the trees that they were harvested from.
@Garnet great resource! Thank you for sharing!
@LadyAuld.ofChico I love that you made a Brigidās Cross with what you gathered. I have 1 made from rushes over a shelf in my room I will burn it on the 31st & make a new 1 to hang in my home. I was thinking of maybe 2, 1 for my space & 1 for my front door. 
Brighid is 1 of the deities that I was first called to & she hasnāt let me down yet. I go to her with a lot & she sends me what I need to heal & move through the weeds.
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Wow, @jessica72. Thatās a great story to go with your wooden drumstick. Music is so powerful in oneās life. Keep that always and remember that night.
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Real quickly wanted to shareā¦
This year I was feeling very emotional taking down our Christmas tree. I love to get the real thing. It smells so amazing! So we had a Balsam Fir this year. Anyway, I was taking down the ornaments and fretting over what would become of the tree once we were āfinishedā with her. I couldnāt bear to just toss her out after all the joy and beauty she offered us!
So I made these
I saved a jar of pine needles and burned some in my little cauldron. It smells divine. I miss Christmas already!
But all this had me thinkingā¦. Is it cruel to get a live Christmas tree every year? It was the tradition in my home growing up that we would hunt for the perfect tree, then my dad would cut it down. Now Iām questioning if this is ethical. Thoughts??
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My Challenge Entry 
For this challenge I decided to do a money spell with my Crassula Horn tree
Image from House of Plants
Since it is a type of Jade plant I thought it would be great for a money spell 
For the spell I placed a piece of paper with my intention underneath the pot with a coin and then I buried three coins in the soil.
Blessed Be!
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For my entry this week I found a lovely Tree Meditation on YouTube. Where you ground your negative energy through your roots. It was a nice one, although I wish I could have found the one where you morph into an entire tree that I had bookmarked somewhere or other. LOL. Still, it was a good mediation, I enjoyed it, and if youāre just learning itās a good one to start out with.
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