According to the folk calendar - Artemon - deri poloz (on this day they exorcised evil spirits with fire)

April 6 (March 24 according to the old style of the calendar) is popularly celebrated as the day of Artemon - take the runner The holiday was named in honor of Saint Artemy Selevsky (Thessalonica), who served as a bishop in the 1st-2nd centuries His memory is honored in the church calendar on this day Artemy was a devout Christian believer in the city of Seleucia, located on the territory of modern Turkey Seeing the monk's righteousness, the Apostle Paul appointed him to the position of bishop in Seleucia Artemy was devoted to church affairs, wisely gave advice to parishioners, and helped the poor and sick For his beneficence, Artemy was considered the intercessor of the disadvantaged It was time to go to Artemon, the streets were getting warm during the day, the snow was actively melting On the roads it mixed with the ground, and in the evening it sometimes became frosty If the owners did not have time to replace the sleigh with a cart, then the runners of the sleigh were often scraped on the frozen surface of the ground, and sometimes the runners were torn Since the day was the eve of the Annunciation, a major holiday when work was not allowed, the peasants tried to have time to redo all household chores The housewives were cleaning the premises and preparing the evening meal before the holiday The owners worked in the garden and repaired equipment There was a tradition on Artemonov Day to go to the temple and bless the seeds of garden crops Residents believed that this would give the plants a chance to grow better after planting But unmarried girls enjoyed attending the night service in the temple They said that such a service would help them marry a respectable man After sunset, residents lit large fires in their courtyards and near churches in order to drive away evil spirits from the settlement Broken wooden things and old straw stuffing from mattresses were burned in them The owners believed that by burning used items, they would get rid of old problems Then, with torches, the peasants walked around their property in a circle, driving out evil spirits Also, fireplaces in villages helped late travelers reach their settlements around the world If snow fell on Artemon, the residents expected a rich buckwheat harvest Frosty weather foreshadowed an abundance of oats at harvest Drops of dew in the morning were observed to indicate millet yield The warm night promised early spring