Black Locust Thorns in Folk Magic

Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) is a hardy tree native to the eastern United States and now naturalised across much of North America and Europe. Young branches carry pairs of short, needle-sharp thorns at the base of each leaf. They are hard to mistake, and they are the reason the tree turns up in protective folk magic: a thorn is a physical boundary you can hold in your hand.

Why thorns?

Thorny plants recur throughout European and American folk magic as guardians. Hawthorn, blackthorn, rose and bramble all lend their defences to the person who keeps them close. Thorns were used as pins in witch bottles and to fix charms in place, and the logic is easy to follow: something that defends itself is a good thing to set at a door.

Black locust adds a second quality. The wood is famously dense and rot-resistant, long used for fence posts, so in folk use the tree also stands for endurance: holding a line and keeping it. Many modern practitioners in the American South and Appalachia, where the tree is common, use locust thorns much as British and Irish witches use blackthorn.

Gathering them safely

This is the part not to skip. Locust thorns are sharp enough to cause deep puncture wounds, and those can become infected.

• Identify the tree properly. Black locust has compound leaves with roughly seven to nineteen oval leaflets, short paired thorns, and fragrant white flower clusters in late spring. Honey locust is a different tree with long, branched, multiple-spiked thorns.
• Protect yourself. Wear thick gloves and eye protection, and keep your tetanus vaccination current.
• Ask first. Take thorns only from trees on your own land or with the owner's permission. Choose trees away from busy roads and sprayed verges.
• Take little. Gather fallen thorns or prune dead wood, and take only what you need. In some regions black locust is considered invasive, so trimming is rarely unwelcome, but ask anyway.
• Keep it out of mouths. The bark, leaves, seeds and roots are toxic if eaten. Store plant material away from children and pets.

Dry the thorns for a week or two on paper before using them, and push each sharp point into a small cork or a dab of candle wax if it is going into a pouch or bag.

Ways to use them

• Protection jar. Layer thorns, a few iron nails or pins, a pinch of black salt and a sprig of rosemary in a small jar. Seal it and keep it near the front door.
• At the threshold. A small pouch of thorns hung above the door, or a single thorn tucked into the frame with the point facing outward, is a quiet, old-fashioned guard.
• The boundary line. Bury thorns, points outward, at the corners of a garden or yard and state what the boundary is for.
• A carried charm. One corked thorn in a small pouch with salt and a nail rides comfortably in a bag or glove box.

Used this way, the thorn is defensive. It keeps things out; it does not need to harm anyone to do it.

A simple protective charm

You will need: three or seven dried locust thorns, one iron nail, a pinch of black salt or sea salt, a sprig of rosemary, and a small red or black pouch.

1. Hold each thorn in turn and name what you are protecting: your home, your car, your family.
2. Place the thorns, points corked or waxed, in the pouch with the nail, salt and rosemary.
3. Close the pouch and say, in your own words, what may pass and what may not. A plain sentence is enough: “Thorn and iron, hold this line. What is welcome may come in.”
4. Hang it above the door, or tuck it inside the place it is guarding.
5. Refresh the salt and rosemary each year and thank the tree.

Keeping expectations honest

Like most folk magic, a thorn charm works through attention. It gives you an object to touch, a boundary to name and a reason to look after your threshold. Pair it with sensible locks and it will do that job well.