When Catherine crownes all learned menne;
Then Ivy and Holly berries are seen,
And Yule clog and wassail come round agen.”
Anthol. Bor. et Aus.
The Roman Catholics have compiled a complete list of flowers, one for every day in the year, in which each flower has been dedicated to a particular saint, usually for no better reason than because it bloomed about the date of the saint’s feast day. This Saints’ Floral Directory is to be found in extenso in Hone’s ‘Every-day Book.’ In the Anglican church the principal Festivals or Red Letter Days have each their appropriate flowers assigned them, as will be seen from the following table:—
| DATE. | SAINT. | APPROPRIATE FLOWER. |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 30. | S. Andrew. | S. Andrew’s Cross—Ascyrum Crux Andreæ. |
| Dec. 21. | S. Thomas. | Sparrow Wort—Erica passerina. |
| Dec. 25. | Christmas. | Holly—Ilex bacciflora. |
| Dec. 26. | S. Stephen. | Purple Heath—Erica purpurea. |
| Dec. 27. | S. John Evan. | Flame Heath—Erica flammea. |
| Dec. 28. | Innocents. | Bloody Heath—Erica cruenta. |
| Jan. 1. | Circumcision. | Laurustine—Viburnum tinus. |
| Jan. 6. | Epiphany. | Screw Moss—Tortula rigida. |
| Jan. 25. | Conversion of S. Paul. | Winter Hellebore—Helleborus hyemalis. |
| Feb. 2. | Purification of B. V. M. | Snowdrop—Galanthus nivalis. |
| Feb. 24. | S. Matthias. | Great Fern—Osmunda regalis. |
| Mar. 25. | Annunciation of B. V. M. | Marigold—Calendula officinalis. |
| Apr. 25. | S. Mark. | Clarimond Tulip—Tulipa præcox. |
| May 1. | S. Philip and S. James. | Tulip—Tulipa Gesneri, dedicated to S. Philip. Red Campion—Lychnis dioica rubra. Red Bachelor’s Buttons—Lychnis dioica plena, dedicated to S. James. |
| June 11. | S. Barnabas. | Midsummer Daisy—Chrysanthemum leucanthemum. |
| June 24. | S. John Baptist. | S. John’s Wort—Hypericum pulchrum. |
| June 29. | S. Peter | Yellow Rattle—Rhinanthus Galli. |
| July 25. | S. James | Herb Christopher—Actæa spicata. |
| Aug. 24. | S. Bartholomew | Sunflower—Helianthus annuus. |
| Sept. 21. | S. Matthew | Ciliated Passion-flower.—Passiflora ciliata. |
| Sept. 29. | S. Michael. | Michaelmas Daisy—Aster Tradescanti. |
| Oct. 18. | S. Luke. | Floccose Agaric—Agaricus floccosus. |
| Oct. 28. | S. Simon and S. Jude | Late Chrysanthemum—Chrysanthemum serotinum. Scattered Starwort—Aster passiflorus, dedicated to S. Jude. |
| Nov. 1. | All Saints. | Amaranth. |
In old church calendars Christmas Eve is marked “Templa exornantur”—Churches are decked.
Herrick, in the time of Charles I., thus combines a number of these old customs connected with the decoration of churches—
“Down with Rosemary and Bays,
Down with the Mistletoe,