MISTLETOE, t (AS. mistcitein, titian, Icel. mistilteinn, from AS. mistr/, bird lime, mistletoe. basil, led.. 01111. inisti/, Ger. MOO, mistletoe -(- AS tan, twig). A genus risruin) of small shrubs of the natural order Loranthaeea•. This order eontains more than 400 known species. mostly tropical and parasitic. The leaves are entire, almost nerveless, thick, fleshy, and without stipules. The (lowers of many species are showy. The common mistletoe (l'iseuen album). a native of the greater part of Europe, grows on many kinds of trees, particu larly on dm apple. and its (dose relatives. the service and hawthorn; .4 also. on moreq. limes. poplars, locust trees. and firs. but rarely on oaks (contrary to the common It is very plentiful in some parts of the south of England, its evergreen loaves giving a peculiar appearance to the orchards in whiter, when the dusters of Jai-4410e are very conspicuous among the naked branches of the trees. The stems di vide by forking: the leaves are opposite. of yellowish•green color, obovate-laneeolate, obtuse.
The flowers are inconspicuous, and grow in small heads at the ends and in the divisions of the branches, the male and female flowers on sepa• rate plants. The berries are about the size of currants, white, translucent, and full of a very viscid juice, which serves to attach the seeds to brandies, where they germinate. and take root, the radicle always turning toward the braneh, whether on its upper or under side. The mistle
toe derives its nourishment from the juices of the tree on which it grows, and from which it seems to spring as if it were one of its own branches. The mistletoe was intimately con nected with many of the superstitions of the an cient Germans and the British Druids. In the northern mythology. Balder is said to have been slain with a spear of mistletoe. Among the Celts the mistletoe which grew on the oak was in pe euliar esteem for magical virtues. Traces of the ancient regard for the mistletoe still remain in some old English and German customs, as kissing under the mistletoe at Christmas. The mistletoe was at one time in high repute as a remedy for epilepsy and convulsions, but it seems to no decided medicinal properties. Lo ranthus Europaaus, n shrill) very shnilar to the mistletoe, but with flowers in racemes. is plenti ful in some parts of the south of Europe. and very frequently grows on oaks. Loranthus °do rah's. a Nepalese species. has very fragrant flowers. In the United States the mistletoe is Phoradendron, a genus of plants closely allied to and greatly resembling N'iseunl. The com mon species in the Eastern States is Phoraden dron fiavescens. It occurs upon s species of deciduous trees from New Jersey to 31issouri and southward. In the southwestern part of the United States and in California are still other species. See Colored Plate of l'AnAsruc PLANTS.