Date according to the old style: August 23. In folk tradition, the day of Saint Lupp (known in Russia as Lup) was called “Brusnichnik.” By this time, cranberries were ripening in the forests and marshes, and all the peasants who were free from heavier agricultural work would take baskets and go berry picking. The berries were used in various ways: pies with cranberries were baked, jams and fruit pastes were made, and compotes were boiled. Pickled cranberries were very popular. Additionally, the berries were valued for their healing properties. The juice was used for colds and tuberculosis, while tea made from the leaves helped with intestinal and liver diseases. The ripeness of the cranberries was also an indicator of whether the oats were ready for harvest. If the berries were full of juice and had turned red, it was time to hurry with the harvest. They also rushed to collect the flax. The women distinguished three stages of flax development: two weeks of blooming, four weeks of ripening, and in the seventh week, the seeds flew away. “On Lup, the flax sheds,” people would say. On Lup’s day, they also watched the cranes: if the birds were heading south, winter would come early. At the same time, if the flock flew low, no severe cold was expected. But if the cranes flew silently and quickly, bad weather was imminent. The first frosts began. “Lup’s frost freezes your nose,” the elders would joke. And they added: “Lup’s frost settles on the oats and sweetens with cranberries.” Name day celebrations on this day Elisabeth, Ephraim, Ivan, Nicholas, Paul, Theodore​