In Czech, the name for July is červenec. It is an ancient Slavic name that translates to the "month of red fruits" or "month of cochineal insects." It comes from the word červený, which means "red," referring to the deep red color of ripening summer berries and fruits traditionally harvested at this time of year.

Most of the saints days that I observe are important on the Czech folk calendar, but I also keep big dates from my British Isles ancestral background—including Lammas Eve.

“Překrásné jsou noci na rovinách,když sládnou marhule a v polích tvrdne rež.”

"Beautiful are the nights on the plains, when the apricots are sweet and the rye is hard in the fields."

—Jan Skácel, 1962

July 2: The Feast of the Visitation of Mary (folkloric date)

July 4: Feast of St. Prokop (Svatý Prokop)

July 5: Saints Cyril and Methodius Day (Svatí Cyril a Metoděj)

July 7: Last Quarter Moon

July 13: Feast of Saint Margaret of Antioch (Svatá Markéta)

July 14: New Moon

July 20: Feast of St. Elijah (Svatý Eliáš)

July 21: First Quarter Moon

July 25: Feast of St. James (Svatý Jakub)

July 26: Feast of St. Anne (Svatá Anna)

July 29: Full Moon (Hay Moon/Linden Moon—west slavic)

On June 12th, 2026, Moravian played a twice sold-out show at the Orchid Theatre in Ferndale, Michigan. In the week leading up to the show, Moravian released their newest single, “Sirens.”  It became the theme of the night. Hometown fans did not take the prompt lightly.  Their commitment to dressing in shimmering blues and dark hues spoke volumes about their love for the band and its music. As it…

I have a strong relationship with the wild cherry tree in my region (native black cherry/Prunus serotina)—what place did the cherry tree have in the folklore of my great-grandparents homeland?

Třešeň – Cherry tree (general term / sweet cherry).

Višeň – Sour cherry tree (frequently used in traditional medicine).

Třešeň ptačí – Wild cherry (the primary variety used for medicinal bark).

Stopky (or třešňové stopky) – Cherry stalks/stems (used for diuretic teas).

Kůra (or třešňová kůra) – Cherry bark (used for cough syrups).

“In the former Czechoslovakia it was customary to cut cherry branches on the Feast of St Barbara on 4 December and bring these into the warmth of the house to have blossom at Christmas.”

Last year on Saint Barbara’s a day I translated this into my own ritual:

I made my first successful fermentation at Midsummer—black cherry cordial from our native cherries. I saved the majority of it back for Midwinter. I always like to save something I make at important dates on the wheel of the year for that date’s opposite. I especially like to save something from Midsummer for Midwinter—bringing the promise of high summer’s abundance to the darkest of days, in this case St. Barbara’s Night, placed nearly in the middle of the Czech and Slovak Witches’ Nights, those eery days between St. Catherine and St. Lucy when who knows what walks in the night?

In this case it was me walking the night. First as I gathered cherry twigs to honor my Moravian ancestors, and later that night under the nearly full Moon Before Yule as I returned to the elder cherry tree with an offering of her own blood, the black cherry cordial she herself gifted me.

I sat with her a bit under the moon and enjoyed her company and the bond we have formed over the last six months.

When I returned to the house I poured myself a glass of cordial combined with sassafras syrup, a combination reminiscent of cherry coke, and arranged my twigs which had been soaking in warm water since I gathered them earlier in the evening.

“However, we will also mention the most famous custom, which was also widespread in our country and appeared in several variants. In Moravian Budějovice, for example, girls would cut as many twigs as they had a wish. When the twigs sprouted before Christmas, the wish was supposed to come true. The girls would pronounce individual wishes while dipping the twigs in water, which, however, no one was allowed to be present at. Otherwise, the prophecy would not come true. In Horáček, the housekeeper would cut as many twigs as there were members of the household. If the twig did not bloom by Christmas Eve, that person would die within a year. If the twigs bloomed by Christmas, the girl who plucked them would get married the following year. In Vrbovec, in addition to fruit tree twigs, vine shoots were also cut. These were placed in a vase, and if they turned green before Christmas, the farmer could expect a favorable year. “Barborkas were also given as gifts to close friends and family members. Sometimes the blooming twigs placed on the festive table replaced the Christmas tree. Divination was also done using the blooming twigs in Lower Austria.”

“However, another Bohemian tale which brings together the Virgin, cherries, birth and death goes: When a mother loses a child, she eats neither strawberries nor cherries until the day of St. John the Baptist (June 24, the traditional date of Midsummer). It is said that at that time the Virgin goes about heaven giving this fruit to the little children. If a mother has not been self-denying, and has eaten of this fruit, when the Virgin comes to the child of such a one, she says: “Poor child, there isn’t much left for you, your mother ate your share.” So mothers of deceased children abstain from fruit until the Midsummer following the child’s death.”

In Czechia, May Day, also known as "Day of Love," there is a tradition where couples kiss under blossoming cherry trees to symbolize love and beauty. This custom is rooted in the belief that a kiss under a cherry tree on this day will bring beauty and good luck throughout the year.

By May Day my cherry trees here in the Southern US are well past blooming, I got my smooch anyway.

From a Czech/Austrian Heritage Cookbook (link underneath):

Translated from the Instagram story of one of my favorite Czech folklore accounts (link below)

Top: my čarodějný kámen found on the Buffalo River and bottom: my husband’s that he found on Mt. Nebo

In Bohemia and Moravia holed stones were hung on walls, in windows, or above doors (often in stables) to guard against evil forces, witches, "uhranuti" (the evil eye), curses, and můry.

In Czech folklore, night hags are called můry (singular: můra) these malevolent supernatural beings or a wandering souls visit sleeping people at night. In the broader Slavic tradition, they are also known as nocnitsa.

Holed stones (děravé kameny) were used specifically to ward off these beings and the sleep paralysis they were thought to cause.

I also read that they are sometimes considered a part of the broader category of thunderstones in Czech folk magic, and in this case the hole would be caused by lightning and sacred to Perun.

To hang one of these stones I would use red thread, which is apotropaic in itself in Slavic folk magic.