Table 1 The semantic subcategories, together with their content
Complexes and collections | With which things and phenomena does the described plant co-occur, performing a common function |
Oppositions | What are the oppositions typical of the plant and what feature becomes the basis for juxtapositions |
Origin | What is the origin of the plant |
Appearance and characteristics | The appearance of the defined plant (size, colour of flowers or fruit) and its characteristics (e.g. scent) |
Flowering and harvest time | The flowering period of the plant and the time of harvesting its fruit |
Cultivation and care | Information relating to the cultivation of the described plant |
Location | Place of occurrence (growth) of the plant |
Locator | Who lives/resides in the plant |
Blessing | When and under what circumstances the plant is blessed |
Practical use | Information on all the practical uses of the plant |
Ritual use | Information on the use of the plant in annual rituals (e.g. Christmas, Easter, St. John’s Day) and family rituals (christening, wedding and funeral) |
Magical use | Information on the use of the plant in magic (for protection, love, household) |
Medicinal use | Information on the use of the plant in folk medicine and in folk veterinary medicine; both in medically justified practices and in magical treatments |
Prophecies + divinations | How the plant is used by man to infer the future |
Equivalents | A list of “cultural substitutes” for the plant, i.e. objects that appear in the same functions |
Symbolism | This concludes the explication part, summarises the definition of the plant |