Shoshone journal. [volume] (Shoshone, Idaho) 1884-1931, 1922-12-15
Views, Reviews, Interviews
and "reminiscences

e in The kitchens and the girl, VIII
4 accidentally or through design. wa
( caught under a bough of the flowe
was kissed by the young man VIII,
loved her. Each time he kissed he
he pluclSed "A berry from the flowel
and for each berry he obtained a kiss
Florists say the mistletoe with Der.
ries is worth twice as much on the
market as that without the little
white berries.
The custom survives
@ 9 Q o
Oklahoma and New Mexico are the
largest producers of mistletoe. The
agricultural department does not list il
as a crop but it is safe to estimate
that $4,000 win be made from its sale
in Oklahoma this year and as much
more from its sales without the state.
Barteles Seed company and the En-
terprise Seed company have been in
the habit of buying UP large amounts
from farmers and boys who make it
a business to gather it during the last
weeks of November The two COM
panies have shipped out $4,000 pounds
in season.
The flower is found on gum and
oak trees in the river bottoms of the
central and southern part of Okla
homa.
In the Washita river bottoms great
quantities of it are found, near Ana
derko, Chicasha. verdun and Pauls
valley More grows along this river
than any other in the state though
there is much to be found in the val
leys Of the north and south Canadian
Seminole country had a large crop this
year and shippers reaped a harvest
there
There is a "mistletoe line which IS
as marked as the Mason and Dixon |
line. The parasite is found as far |
north as New Jersey and southern |
Indiana. There are large quantities of |
it along the Pacific coast and much |
of it in Texas. 1t is regarded as
strange by florists in Oklahoma that
Texans viii not pick the flower.
Many farmer boys have added to
their years earnings by stripping the
trees OF mistletoe and retailing it
in nearby cities or sending it to the
wholesalers. There is an element Of
danger to the gathering of the flower
as the prettiest and most tempting
punches invariably are to be found
at the extreme ends of small limbs
and in tree tops.
Gatherers wear large sacks and drop
each bunch into them so that the clus-
tiers will not be crushed. A few years
ago 1t was through one Of these sacks
that a small boy lost his life by hang
ing when he slipped while high in
tree. Some gatherers of the product
make sport of hunting II with rifles
Agood shot con pick the prize bunch
the limb with bullet The bunch
must then be caught so that the ber-
ries will not be lost.
Approximately 10000 pounds OF mis-
iletoe were shipped out OF Oklahoma
his year by seed companies. The
Is placed in large pasteboard
boxes In 70 TO so pound quantities.
md H. usually sent by express the first
week IN December. Gatherers are
,aid TO 7 cents a pound and the
wholesaler gets 20 10 IS cents, In
Winnipeg, Canada. and far north n
astefn cities whore most Of Okla
loma's shipments 80, a small bunch.
ellis Tor a dollar and the larger bunch
y retail Tor as high az ten dollars.
Prices have advanced 20 10 so sss
ent in the last three years 40 the
lo~ef became mora scarce, ln 0sla
one Guy large bvaehes tssnshi
he Ffeg bottoms near ine fair
fppnds and Wheeler pad afe sola
n ine sifeoie ~ lltils be,s 80 my
snis A. p dollar and ons hflf n u
Ref tAllsimps money feT ihe hqys
Wen n1ef atihf q Nef sheie maoh
Z lNe u'lslls'Qe Dpee leF ~ Qn tleee
~ ~ ellub ppi most ~ ine ulaf
hef 4 ~ Wpeb Rpif ~ selilne 90
lFe renelfa ihai ~ Huh oquniaa