Legends 37: An Apple a Day (ad-free)

Folklore grows. It has roots that run deep and branches that stretch out far and wide. The stories we pluck from it are fruit, in more ways than one—and that’s not necessarily a safe thing.

Narrated and produced by Aaron Mahnke, with writing by Alex Robinson, and research by GennaRose Nethercott.

Sources:

• “10 Mythological Origin Stories About Fruit.” Listverse. January 29, 2014. https://listverse.com/2014/01/29/10-mythological-origin-stories-about-fruit/

• “10 New Year’s Superstitions From Around the World.” Vogue. December 28, 2023. https://www.vogue.com/article/new-years-eve-traditions

• “1862 Letter Condit to Foster.” Philip Foster Papers (MSS 996). 

• Albright, Mary Beth. “Michaelmas: The Day the Devil Spit on Your Blackberries.” National Geographic. September 28. 2015. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/michaelmas-the-day-the-devil-spit-on-your-blackberries

• “Apple Folklore, Fairytales, Myths, and Magic.” Enchanted Living. https://enchantedlivingmagazine.com/apple-folklore-fairy-tales-myth-and-magic/

• Briggs, Katharine. “An Encyclopedia of Fairies: Hobgoblins, Brownies, Bogies, and Other Supernatural Creatures.” (Pantheon, 1976).  Pps 14, 141, 160. https://archive.org/details/BriggsKatharineMaryAnEncyclopediaOfFairies

• Conditt, Phillip. Diary Transcripts. Courtesy of the Oregon Historical Society.

• “Farm History.” Phillip Foster Farm. 

• “Fruit and folklore: a guide to the folk beliefs associated with British foods.” House and Garden. May 22, 2022. https://www.houseandgarden.co.uk/article/fruit-and-folklore

• “Goblin Market.” Poetry Foundation. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44996/goblin-market

• Harte, Jeremy. “Michaelmas: The Day the Devil Spits on Blackberries?” Folklore Thursday. October 19, 2019. https://folklorethursday.com/folklife/michaelmas-the-devils-blackberry-day/

• “How the Coconut Came to Myanmar.” Mocomi. https://mocomi.com/indian-folk-tales-how-the-coconut-came-to-myanmar/

• “Japanese Mythology: Cosmogony.” Canadian Studies Center. August 29, 2019. https://canadianstudies.isp.msu.edu/news_article/22292

• Johnson, Ben. “Michaelmas.” Historic UK. https://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/Michaelmas/

• “Little Snow-White.” Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. https://sites.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm053.html

• “Mary Conditt.” Find-a-Grave. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/19270226/mary-conditt

• McPherson, Amy. “The Rebirth of Norway’s Cider Tradition.” BBC. September 20, 2023. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20230920-the-rebirth-of-norways-cider-tradition

• “Micah Rood.” Find-a-Grave. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/152990544/micah-rood

• “Myth Busters: Is It Safe To Bring Bananas On A Ship?” Massachusetts Maritime Academy. https://www.maritime.edu/follow-the-voyage/myth-busters/myth-busters-it-safe-bring-bananas-ship

• “Mythology, Mango Trees, and Growing Up in India.” Pajarito Environmental Education Center. April 17, 2023. https://peecnature.org/mythology-mango-trees-and-growing-up-in-india/

• “Nancy Black.” Find-a-Grave. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/19270228/nancy-black

• “Oasis of Apples.” The Sunday Oregonian Magazine. July 27, 1952.

• “Philip Condit Trail Diary of 1854.” Oregon Pioneers. http://www.oregonpioneers.com/Condit_Diary.htm

• Pickering, David. “Cassell Dictionary of Superstitions.” (Cassell, 1995). Pps 9, 10, 109, 111, 112, 201, 203. 

• “Prickly History: The Fruit That Tastes Like Heaven and Smells Like Hell.” Saigoneer. February 4, 2017. https://saigoneer.com/saigon-food-culture/9197-prickly-history-the-fruit-that-tastes-like-heaven-and-smells-like-hell

• “Rev. Philip Condit.” Ancestry.com. Family tree.

• Stevens, Austin N. Mysterious New England. (Yankee Magazine, 1971). Pp 157-158. https://archive.org/details/mysteriousneweng00stev/

• “The Apples of the Hesperides.” Perseus Project. https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/Herakles/apples.html

• “The Curse of Micah Rood Near Boston.” Nightly Spirits. June 16, 2020. https://nightlyspirits.com/the-curse-of-micah-rood-near-boston/

• “The disturbing true story behind Franklin's 'cursed' apple tree.” CT Insider. September 19, 2019. https://www.ctinsider.com/connecticutmagazine/news-people/article/The-disturbing-true-story-behind-Franklin-s-17044838.php

• “Turkey’s talisman superstitions: Evil eyes, pomegranates and more.” Daily Sabah. June 10, 2021. https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/expat-corner/turkeys-talisman-superstitions-evil-eyes-pomegranates-and-more

• “Why Do We Bob for Apples on Halloween?” Martha Stewart. June 24, 2022. https://www.marthastewart.com/8147297/bobbing-for-apples-halloween-origin

• “Why Pineapples have Eyes – Filipino Legend.” USC Digital Folklore Archives. https://folklore.usc.edu/why-pineapples-have-eyes-filipino-legend/