A Weed Is A Weed Is A Weed, Unless It’s Mistletoe, UF Professor Says

December 12, 1997

GAINESVILLE—Before you enlist the help of mistletoe to land some smooches this holiday season, there’s something University of Florida horticulturist Robert Black wants you to know.

Mistletoe is a weed.

Yes, folks, the sort of thing no self-respecting gardener would let into his home.

With its deep-green leaves and white, waxy berries, it looks innocent enough. Especially tied up with a big-red Christmas bow or hanging in the doorway waiting to witness a holiday kissing bandit.

But mistletoe is actually a vicious, sap-sucking, destructive little pest, even a tree-killer at times, says Black, a professor in UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

So much for one of the season’s favorite symbols of peace, love and understanding.

Black says mistletoe’s undeservedly good reputation started centuries ago with the Norse belief that men who met in battle under mistletoe would stop fighting, kiss and make up. The Druids also prized mistletoe and used sprays of it hung in doorways to indicate that past grievances and hatreds were forgiven.

Centuries ago the ancient customs gave way to mistletoe’s use in yuletide decorations.

“Most people think of it as a good plant, but really, it’s a parasite,” Black said.

Mistletoe grows on the limbs of hardwood trees, sending out roots that penetrate the topmost branches, seeking water and nutrients. The tree will decline and sometimes even die if under other stresses as well, Black said.

The people selling mistletoe at roadside stands during the holidays are not commercially producing the weed. They’re the intrepid souls willing to climb to the very tops of trees to harvest.

Anyone who wants to decorate with the weed should be aware that the entire plant is poisonous and the white berries might be particularly tempting to toddlers, Black said.

“To many it symbolizes love, to some death, and still others see it as medicinal,” Black said. “But horticulturally, it’s a weed.”