Mistletoe

Mistletoe has been used as a holiday decoration for centuries. One common custom is to hang a branch of mistletoe as a subtle challenge to kiss the unsuspecting person who stands beneath it. This soft woody plant with distinctive white berries is actually a parasite, feeding and taking nutrients from its host plant, mainly older oaks and other large trees. Luckily, this isn't much of a problem in healthy trees. By harvesting mistletoe, you combine a fun holiday decorating activity with keeping your trees healthy. Just be sure to keep it out of reach of children and pets—it is toxic when ingested.

UF/IFAS Sites

• Controlling Mistletoe
• Holidays Are Sealed with Mistletoe
• Landscape Plants: Mistletoe
• Mistletoe
• Q&A: What is Mistletoe?
• What's That In My Tree?

UF/IFAS Publications

• Mistletoe (PDF)
• Mistletoe Can Damage a Tree (PDF)

Also on Gardening in a Minute

• Alternative Holiday Plants
• Deadly Plants
• Natural Holiday Decorations

Other Sites

• Mistletoe--Virginia Cooperative Extension
• Mistletoe, a Florida Native--FloridaGardener.com
• Mistletoe, a Traditional Holiday Decoration--University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension
• The Mistletoe Center--US Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Center
• Mistletoe Magic, Myth and Mystery--Colorado State University Extension
• Mistletoe Management Guidelines--University of California IPM
• Plant Palette: Mistletoe--University of Illinois Extension
• True Mistletoes--University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
• What Does Mistletoe Have to Do with Christmas?--American Phytopathological Society
• Will Mistletoe Kill My Water Oak Tree?--eXtension.org