Home > Plants and Animals > Plants > Plants

Topic:mistletoe

mistletoe. (Image by Britannica)

Visit our new topic page about mistletoe

mistletoe

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | Date: 2008

mistletoe common name for the Loranthaceae, a family of chiefly tropical hemiparasitic herbs and shrubs with leathery evergreen leaves and waxy white berries. They have green leaves, but they manufacture only part of the nutrients they require. Mistletoes are aerial hemiparasites, attaching themselves to their hosts by modified roots called haustoria, with which they absorb water and food from the host. The list of hosts is varied and numerous. Mistletoes are widely used for Christmas decoration. The custom of kissing under a branch of mistletoe apparently originated among the Druids and other early Europeans, to whom mistletoe was sacred. From early times it has been associated with folklore and superstition; it was thought to cure many ills. The mistletoe most widely sold in America is Phoradendron flavescens; most popular in Europe is the "true" mistletoe, Viscum album of the related family Viscacceae, which is parasitic especially on apple trees. An American genus ( Arceuthobium ) with several species found along the Pacific coast is parasitic on conifers. The largest genus of the family, Loranthus, is predominantly African. The mistletoe family is classified in the division Magnoliophyta , class Magnoliopsida, order Santalales.

Author not available, MISTLETOE., The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition 2008

Related newspaper, magazine, and journal articles from HighBeam Research

	Cherish mistletoe clumps or you'll be kissing it goodbye.(News) Western Mail (Cardiff, Wales); 12/13/2005; 748 words ; Mistletoe comes into our homes once a year at Christmas, and has ... plant plays in our lives and the threats it now faces MISTLETOE is one of Britain's best-known, but least understood ... forward to, or brace ourselves for 'a kiss under the mistletoe'. But, it's at this time of year that mistletoe is ... Read more
	Mistletoe legend sealed with a kiss Deseret News (Salt Lake City); 12/16/2005; Larry A. Sagers Deseret Morning News; 662 words ; Is mistletoe mystical and romantic or malicious, malevolent ... asked question is how many different kinds of mistletoes there are. The answer varies on the taxonomy, but there are mistletoes in four different plant families. Going down ... Read more
	UNDER THE MISTLETOE.(M)(Washington Weekend) The Washington Times; 12/20/2001; White, Suzanne; 2087 words ; Byline: Suzanne White Sitting under the mistletoe (Pale-green, fairy mistletoe), One last candle burning low, All the ... was; my head would go Nodding under the mistletoe (Pale-green, fairy mistletoe); No footsteps came, no voice, but only ... kissed me there. - Walter de la Mare, Mistletoe At ... Read more
	The Independent Archive: Mistletoe: a plant for all seasons 22 December 1987 Before ever a couple kissed under the Christmas mistletoe, it was a plant of ancient religious significance. Now it is emerging as a treatment for cancers. Oliver Gillie reports The Independent - London; 12/22/1998; Oliver Gillie; 640 words ; THREE GRAINS of mistletoe pollen together with a few other odd ... Cheshire in 1984, had three grains of mistletoe pollen in his stomach. His throat was ... sacred grove in April or May while the mistletoe was in bloom. Equally, he may have ... Read more
	9. Influence of soil chemical factors on the cultivation of oak mistletoe (Viscum album on Quercus robur and petraea) and host-specific mineral concentrations of mistletoe extracts. Phytomedicine: International Journal of Phytotherapy & Phytopharmacology; 10/1/2007; Ramm, H.; 370 words ; Introduction: The mistletoe Viscum album has a wide range of host ... robur and petraea). To ensure the oak mistletoe supply for Iscador[TM] production ... Research) started a programme for oak mistletoe cultivation on different sites in ... Read more
	Mistletoe, a Sprig of Myth and Romance, in Our Midst The Washington Post; 12/13/2007; Gardening; 1269 words ; Do people kiss beneath the mistletoe to keep their minds off the plant ... from the tree's veins. One or two mistletoe bushes in an otherwise healthy tree ... squirrel's nest, if green, may be a mature mistletoe working its macabre magic. This sinister ... Read more
	MISTLETOE INTRASTATE FREIGHT CARRIER LICENSE REVOLKED The Journal Record; 7/28/1988; BILL MAY; 782 words ; The license for Mistletoe Express Service to operate as an intrastate ... commission's order said. It does not affect Mistletoe's authority to transport freight between ... freight virtually statewide to replace Mistletoe. However, Film Transit's application ... Read more
	KISS OF LIFE; The treatment of cancer mainly involves chemical cocktails and radiation but at a clinic in the Midlands, Mother Nature is lending a hand as well. Lifestyle Editor ZOE CHAMBERLAIN reports on mistletoe medicine. Mistletoe used to help ease agony of cancer.(Features) Sunday Mercury (Birmingham, England); 2/17/2008; 1230 words ; Byline: ZOE CHAMBERLAIN MISTLETOE is normally associated with Christmas ... alongside conventional treatment, mistletoe therapy induces a fever which boosts ... spontaneous remission after being given mistletoe, with around 70 per cent suffering ... Read more
	AS A PARASITE, MISTLETOE NOT ALWAYS SO ROMANTIC.(Kentucky Life)(Gardening) The Kentucky Post (Covington, KY); 12/27/2003; 357 words ; Byline: David Koester Mistletoe, the same small leafy plants used ... Kentucky landscapes. In some areas, mistletoe is becoming a common parasite of several ... hardwood trees. One species of American mistletoe is called Phoradendron serotinum ... Read more
	Botany under the Mistletoe. Science News; 12/23/2000; MILIUS, SUSAN; 2213 words ; ... holiday merrymaker loitering under the mistletoe may not be thinking much about parasitic ... most watermelon spitters can spout. Some mistletoes grow as parasites on other parasitic mistletoes. And some give North Americans and Australians ... Read more

See all related premium articles

Related entries from encyclopedias, dictionaries, and thesauruses

	mistletoe Britannica Concise Encyclopedia ... Viscaceae family. V. album , the traditional mistletoe of literature and Christmas celebrations ... American counterpart is P. serotinum . Mistletoe was formerly believed to have magical ... medicinal powers, and kissing under hanging mistletoe was said to lead inevitably to marriage ... Read more
	mistletoe The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology mistletoe OE. misteltān ( = ON. mistilteinn ), f. mistel mistletoe ( = OHG. mistil (G. mistel ), Du. mistel , ON. mistil ) + tān twig ( = Du. teen withe, OHG. zein rod, ON. teinn twig, spit, Goth. tains twig). Read more
	mistletoe World Encyclopedia mistletoe Any of numerous species of evergreen plants that are semi-parasitic on tree branches. It has small, spatula-shaped, yellowish-green leaves and generally forms a large dense ball of foliage. The mistletoe taps into the branch of its host to sap its food supply, avoiding the necessity of growing roots ... Read more
	mistletoe-bird A Dictionary of Zoology mistletoe-bird ( Dicaeum hirundinaceum ) See DICAEIDAE . Read more
	mistletoe The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English mis·tle·toe / ˈmisəlˌtō / • n. a leathery-leaved parasitic plant that grows on apple, oak, and other broadleaf trees and bears white glutinous berries in winter. Its several species include the Eurasian Viscum album (family Viscaceae) and the American Read more