Seasoning the Pillow

A Mississippi tradition that encourages leaving hawthorn under baby cribs to prevent 'the false mother' from stealing their baby and replacing them with a changeling.

---

Execution

A sprig of hawthorn (also known as white horn or Mayflower) is plucked from a nearby shrub and placed on the bedding area for a child. The sprig can be placed relatively anywhere, most commonly under a pillow, between sheets, or even above a wall.
This small tradition is said to prevent a known entity called the false mother from abducting. A witch-like creature that would attempt to steal unguarded children in their sleep, replacing them with a changeling; a fake child made of sticks and mud, who brings bad omens to those around it.

---

History

Most small settlements would struggle to maintain themselves with this superstition lurking along the Mississippi River. The widespread pandemonium formed into a continual tradition reminiscent of gifts on Christmas or kissing under the mistletoe.
The tradition was lost to time but its origins are rooted in the first owners of the land.
Natives would often have hawthorns scattered on the ground within their tents. Which showed patterns amongst many tribes, some that haven't even interacted with each other. Few tribes practised early forms of gardening, migrating shrubs of hawthorn to their encampments as a deterrent. 
For a superstition, these people certainly took the extra precaution.
It wasn't until the tales of the false mother spread to European settlers, that the practice was adopted. The idea that some strange lady would take your child and replace it with a monster seemed preposterous. But in these lands, preposterous is what you tread lightly around.

by Butcher (via Midjourney)