Us Druids used a particular method for communicating and for remembering the wealth of tree-knowledge. This is known as the
Ogham [pronounced o'um].
It comprises of twenty-five simple strokes centred on or branching off a central line. It is similar in purpose, but of seperate origin to the Nordic runes. The Ogham characters were inscribed on stones or written on staves of wood. As a method of writing it is laborious, but as a language of symbolism it is powerful.
It is probably pre-Celtic in origin, although most of the existing inscriptions have been dated to the fifth and sixth centuries. Whether Celtic or pre-Celtic we sense that it carries with it the essence of the earliest of Druid wisdom.
Each stroke of the Ogham corresponds to a letter of the alphabet. This letter represents the first letter of the tree allocated to it, so that the sign ** represents the letter B, and the tree Beith, the Birch. The sign ** represents the letter L, and the Rowan (Luis), and so on.
(IMG:
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y220/Mr_Merlin/ogham.gif)