A Christmas tradition

Mistletoe has long been associated with Christmas and is quite a romantic tradition.  One where if two people find themselves standing under a twig of the plant they must share a kiss. You may rethink the romantic part once you hear more about this plant.

The first unusual fact about the festive plant is it is a parasitic organism which steals nutrients and water from is host plants eventually killing it. The best way to rid it from trees is to cut off the entire branch you find it on.

The pretty white berries and green leaves produced by mistletoe plants are poison. Not that it’s been known to kill humans, it will cause blurred vision, vomiting, drowsiness and seizures if ingested. However, your household pets will not be so fortunate if they ingest the plant.

I recall as a child asking my mother how mistletoe grew the ways it does in trees. She said birds would eat the seeds then leave droppings and the plants would sprout. And, that’s exactly the correct answer. Once left behind by the birds, the hearty plant will take root and continue to spread.

The original name of mistletoe was “mistaltan.” The word “mistal” comes from the Anglo-Saxon word for “dung” and “tan” means “twig.” So, the meaning of that pretty Christmas kissing tradition? “Dung on a twig.”

Well there you go. All these years we’ve looked at balls and sprigs of mistletoe as being a sweet, romantic encourager for sharing a kiss with someone at Christmas-time. When in reality, though very beautiful, it’s lethal dung on a stick.