St. Nick has left his stash and is back at the North Pole. And the clock is ticking closer to the new year. This is the “tween” season. There is one holiday decoration that can bridge the seasons with a simple kiss — mistletoe.
Mistletoe has become a popular holiday decoration to hang in a doorway. And if you hang around the mistletoe long enough, you might get a smooch. But you don’t have to toss the mistletoe just because Christmas is over. It is one of those decorations that can cross over to New Year’s, for another kiss or two.
In ancient times, people thought the berries were an antidote when someone was poisoned. They were really living on the edge in those times, because they also thought the berries were an aphrodisiac or the soul of the oak tree as it grows.
And some stories say it was once a tree that furnished the wood of the Cross where Jesus was crucified. They say the plant shriveled and became a parasitic vine as punishment.
According to folklore, the kissing custom is English and when two people meet under a sprig of mistletoe they are obliged to kiss. And just like the United States flag, it isn’t supposed to touch the ground when it is cut. That’s why you usually find it hanging.
Another story says people removed one of the berries each time they kissed, and when all the fruit was gone, the little vine lost its Christmas magic and the kissing stopped.
Other legends say a couple kissing under the mistletoe will have good luck, but a couple who pass under without kissing will have bad luck. And if you burn a small sprig of dried mistletoe, it’s said, steady flames mean you will have a healthy marriage and weak flames mean a woman might never marry at all.
In real life, mistletoe could be considered an obsessed lover. It is a parasite plant that lives on the branches of another tree or shrub. It has a less romantic nickname — “the vampire plant” — because it grows under the bark of its host and sucks the life out of it.
Dwarf mistletoe is native in the northern part of North America. It grows wild in southeast Michigan and northwest Ohio and can usually be spotted growing on Hackberry and black spruce trees as well as other trees. Mistletoe can take a lot out of a tree. Sometimes it makes the ends of the branches look like a witch’s broom.
The berries are anything but romantic. Scientists know they contain viscotoxins and are poisonous. Eating them can cause stomach cramps and diarrhea, according to the Michigan State Department of Health. The seeds are spread from bird droppings or from the berries getting lodged in the bark of a tree. That is where they will take root and start to feed off of the soft part of the tree under the bark.
There is much to celebrate during the holidays. Mistletoe can be that simple embellishment to ring in a wonderful new year with a touch of extra love.
Contact Kelly Heidbreder at getgrowing@gmail.com
First Published December 28, 2014, 5:00 a.m.
