January is the month to wassail the orchards and bless the apple trees for a fruitful harvest. This ancient ritual pre-dates 1066 and was part of the Yule traditions, held on the twelfth night. As ‘Old Christmas’ was on January 6th, a wassail is usually held in mid January in cider producing counties.

I joined the Acid Morris at School Farm in Dartington for their wassail celebrations in January 2024 & ‘25. This merry band of techno druids come with their own spin on traditional Morris dancing. They also have a homemade Mari Lywd, a mysterious folk hobby horse which is part of the wassail tradition. This is created using a real horse skull and made to match their neon outfits! The Mari was paraded around whilst they danced a jig and entertained everyone. A lot of noise was made, banging drums and saucepans to wake up the trees and scare away evil spirits. We toasted the trees with cider and apple juice for a fruitful harvest. The party continued late into the night, with a rave at a local venue and lots of bin banging!