According to the folk calendar - Willow-Bearer, Spring Solstice

On March 21 (March 8, old style), according to the folk calendar, the Spring Solstice, Verbonositsa, is celebrated This holiday is dedicated to the cycle of the sun, when daylight equals night and continues to increase every day until the summer solstice Since paganism, the sun has been revered on this day He was considered the main deity because he gave light and warmth to living beings Various rituals were performed on the Spring Solstice The peasants lit huge fires on the hill, jumped over them and danced in circles They believed that this gave residents solar energy, health and longevity The day was popularly considered the beginning of natural spring The snow was already melting from the ground, migratory birds were returning en masse to their former habitats, and the first blossoms were beginning In honor of the holiday, women sculpted birds from sweet dough and baked them in the oven Then the children were treated to cookies, and they threw them into the sky and caught them Such a ritual brought prosperity and health to the family At the Spring Solstice, it was customary to draw symbols of fertility and new life on eggs: the earth, trees, sun, birds A special amulet was prepared from painted eggs Another day they called it the Verbosnitsa, since by this time the silver willow was blooming Young girls went into the forest and broke its branches, and then carried them home and placed them near the icons If the willow produced a leaf on Palm Sunday, happiness awaited the family Illuminated willow branches had magical properties They were used to ward off evil spirits and various diseases Witches cured diseases in children by reading a spell and symbolically lashing them with willow branches The owners easily beat their livestock with willow, thus fighting off diseases In order to get rid of evil spirits in the house, they fanned the walls and swept the floor with a willow broom, and the collected garbage was burned away from the home Dried willow was used as medicine They insisted on the bark and rinsed the mouth with it if their teeth or throat hurt In crushed form, it was sprinkled on a bleeding wound to stop the bleeding It was also used instead of tea and added to herbal preparations If you noticed the flowering of willows and the arrival of larks on Verbonositsa, you prepared for the warm spring season Birds nesting in sunny places meant cool summers A cloudy day promised a cold summer with frequent precipitation, a sunny day promised a hot summer The fog foreshadowed a slight frost at night