One has to wonder why such a perculiar, rare, and difficult tree (see Science) has come down to us at all. Patrick Roper* has suggested the tree might have had "mystical associations" in the Dark Ages, and it has been suggested it grew in "sacred groves"¹, however, a more likely reason is the magical power of booze. It appears the Sorbs can be used to make a drink known to the Romans as cevevisia² (hence the name)** and Fred Jennings* has suggested that this, and the drink's use in augmenting mead, may account for the tree's survival and spread. In Germany, schnapps is still produced from the sorbs*.

None-the-less, most trees have attracted a folklore to them, and this tree is no exception. For those following the modern delight with things Templar, apparently they made their staffs from this tree*, while in the Wyre Forest, where it was known as "wichen", sprigs from the tree were thought to act as talismen against evil spirits*. It is, of course, possibly the tree has picked up (or been responsible for) some of the supernatural connections of the Mountain Ash.