6 Scottish Halloween traditions

1. Neep lanterns

Root crops, such as turnips, grow well in Scotland thanks to our cool, damp climate. Being roughly the size and shape of a human head, turnips were traditionally hollowed out and the outer skin carved into a scary face. Lit from the inside, these ghostly lanterns – also known as ‘tumshie lanterns’ – were believed to ward off malevolent spirits.

In North America, the ‘Jack O’ Lantern’ is carved from a pumpkin, which are considerably easier to carve. Despite their preference for a warm and sunny climate, pumpkins are now grown commercially in Scotland too, including at Geilston Garden.

However, if you’re a traditionalist and fancy making your own neep lantern, you’ll need strong arms and a sharp knife! Choose a good head-sized turnip and cut off a disc from the bottom and top. Mark out a border around 3cm from the skin and gouge out the flesh from the centre. Carve triangular eyes and a nose (anything more adventurous is tricky with a turnip!), pop in a tealight and keep the ghosts at bay!

Top tip!
Use up all that lovely turnip flesh by making ‘champit neeps’ (mashed turnips), delicious with salt, freshly ground black pepper and lots of butter.

2. Apple dookin’

An ancient Celtic tradition, this game remains a firm favourite at Halloween parties. Without using their hands, players have to grab an apple floating in a basin of water. Sounds easy, right? Tactics include spearing apples with a fork held between the teeth or, for those with strong gnashers, a big decisive bite. Those less keen on a soaking drop a fork from their teeth into the bucket, in the vain hope of spearing the fruit.

Also known as ‘apple bobbing’, why this game is played at Halloween is unclear – some sources claim the medieval pastime of ducking alleged ‘witches’ in water to test their innocence, while others claim connections to worshipping Pamona, the Roman goddess of fruit trees and orchards.

Today, you’ll find hundreds of apples to fall in love with at our properties as the National Trust for Scotland boasts several significant collections of historic cultivars. The garden at Fyvie Castle, dating back to the early 18th century and created by General William Gordon, has one of the most complete collections of Scottish apple, pear and plum trees in the country, while Priorwood Garden is home to the National Collection of Scottish Apples with over 70 heritage varieties, all grown organically.

Best bucket bobbers

• White Melrose – first recorded in 1851 but is thought to be much older, possibly introduced by the monks of Melrose Abbey, this apple is delicious eaten fresh from the tree, and holds its shape well when cooked in a crumble.
• James Grieve – a cross between a Potts Seedling and Cox’s Orange Pippin and bred by Edinburgh nurseryman James Grieve to suit the Scottish climate, this one is a great pollinator with a sweet and mild flavour when mature.
• Ribston Pippin – reputedly the parent of the Cox’s Orange Pippin, this crisp, aromatic apple contains vast amounts of Vitamin C and made a literary appearance in works by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Charles Dickens.

3. Treacle scones

Another activity that sees players banned from using their hands, this messy game challenges participants to take bites out of sticky treacle-covered scones dangling from string. Messy but tasty!

4. Nut burning

Our native trees and shrubs are the harbingers of all sorts of wonderful histories. Thousands of years ago in Scotland, Druids lit bonfires of Scots pine during winter solstice to mark the passing of the seasons, while it’s said that holly bushes were left uncut on Scottish estates to deter witches from running across the tops of hedges. The rowan tree was believed to protect against witches and evil spirits – even today, it’s deemed very bad luck to cut one down.

Finally, it was widely believed that the fruit from hazel trees provided knowledge and wisdom, so another Scottish Halloween tradition was for a couple to throw hazelnuts on the fire – if the nuts burned quietly, the union would be a happy one. However, if they hissed and crackled, a turbulent future lay ahead.

5. Guising

Scottish children traditionally donned costumes and pretended to be malicious spirits as they went ‘guising’ around the local streets. It was believed that, by disguising themselves, they would blend in with any wandering spirits and remain safe from harm. After performing tricks or songs, guisers were given gifts to help ward off evil – a far cry from some of today’s trick-or-treaters, who get ‘treats’ for simply showing up in costume.

6. Kale pulling

This hearty green vegetable is now a fashionable menu item but, once upon a time, kale stalks were used to predict your romantic future. In Robert Burns’s poem ‘Halloween’, young men and women pull stalks from the ground after dark with their eyes closed or blindfolded. According to Scottish folklore, the length and shape of the stalk was said to represent your future lover’s height and figure. Even the amount of soil left clinging to the roots was symbolic – a generous coating indicated future wealth and a clean stalk suggested lean days ahead.

Once deemed suitable only for cattle fodder, kale has undergone its own change in fortune; among some nutritionists, it holds ‘superfood’ status. A member of the cabbage (brassica) family, kale is hardy and easy to grow. Not only will it thrive in even the coldest months, but the more leaves you pick, the more will grow. Sow kale seeds from March to June and plant seedlings out from April to July, harvesting from September right through to March.

Kale comes in many varieties – Cavolo Nero is one of the most popular – and is highly decorative as well as nutritious. Delicate young leaves are delicious in salad while older leaves can be softened down in soups and stews to add green, earthy flavours