Evening star., 1915-12-12

I specimens which he found in the Caro-
| linas viscum album, under the impress
European plant. -
Another pioneer botanist, Nuttall
suggested that the American plant diff
fered from the European one widely
| enough to deserve a separate generic
distinction, and he proposed the name
phoradendron. a word compounded OF
two Greek words meaning tree thief
There are perhaps hundred species OF
mistletoe growing in America, but
phoradendron is accepted usually as
the American mistletoe and is invested
with all the legends and traditions
which have been set around or hung
upon viscum album, or the European
mistletoe.
The Department Of Agriculture in bull
letin on '"The Mistletoe Pest in the South
west" has described the. American mistle-
toe as leafy. green parasitic shrub COM
monty found growing upon various
species of broad-leafed trees Throughout
the southern states. and extending in
more or less modified forms across Texas,
southern New Mexico and Arizona to
southern California, and thence north
ward in the coast region to Oregon and
Washington. Eastward its northern limit
is in New Jersey, southern Pennsylvania,
southern Ohio, Indiana, Illinois. Missouri
and eastern Oklahoma. The department
says.
Speaking generally. mistletoe is held
in rather high regard everywhere because
OF its inherently interesting mode of life.
because of the traditional and historical
atmosphere which invests the original
mistletoe of Europe, and because of its
desirability. for these and other reasons,
as decorative Christmas shrub. The
fact that 1t is parasite implies a pos
sibie injury to the tree upon which it
grows, but the injury is regarded as rela-
lively slight. and more than offset by
the feeling Of regard for the parasite"
The department says that among people
who see it rarely, and especially AMONG
those living in northern cities, who pur-
chase small sprigs or punches of 1t at a
good price for Christmas decoration, the
Idea of mistletoe. being a harmful parasit
upon trees is quite lost sight of. Never
theless. there are localities in which
mlstletoe becomes SO abundant upon trees
and so harmful to them as to make the
control of it or it's determination a seri-
Gus practical question.
1t is said that this is notably the case
in parts of Texas There is a belt of
country in that state in which mistletoe
The area most harnfully infected would
be comprised in a circle Of a hundred
miles in radius having its center at Austin.
The mistletoe shows a strong senti-
mental attachment for the oak. but it lives
off most other trees. among them the
pecan. hickory. post oak. bur oak, Texan
oak, water oak, willow oak, blackjack
live oak, cedar elm. white elm or Aineri-
can elm, blackberry or sugarberry, Usage
orange, paper mulberry. sassafras. sweet
gum, apple. pear, cherry. thorn, acacia;
water locust, honey locust,
prickly ash. China berry,. black gum, per-
simmon and water ash. 1t has also been
" ritten that in the far west it grows upon
the yellow pine, Douglas fir, lodgepolc
pine and cedar.
The American mistletce has very
small and inconspicuous flowers,
though some of the tropical mistletoes
of this hemisphere have large and con-
spicuous flowers. While the European
mistletoe is pollinated by insects it is
said that the American mistletoe de-
pends upon the winds for, the transfer
of pollen from flower to flower, that
the plant. may reproduce itself. The
of the seed and berry fol-
lows slowly the Towering 'and pollina-