Dung On A Twig

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I am a die-hard romantic and always thought that the tradition of hanging mistletoe in a doorway and if you are caught under it you have to kiss the person next to you was rather intriguing and, with the right person next to you, even rather provocative, I thought the plant itself was rather pretty with its greyish-green leaves and white berries. On a whim I decided to read up on it and this is some of the interesting facts I found: There are 1,300 species of mistletoe worldwide and of those twenty are endangered. In Greek Phoradendron, the scientific name for American mistletoe, means "theif of the tree". Mistletoe can actually sink its roots into a tree and suck nutrients out. The word "mistletoe" comes from the Anglo-Saxon word that means "dung" which is "Mistal" and "tan" which means "twig". This is because a few centuries back it was observed that the mistletoe seemed to grow where birds had left their droppings. So it actually means "dung on a twig". Seeds of the mistletoe are sticky and will stick to feathers or beaks of birds and will be carried to a host tree where it starts to germinate. Bees use the mistletoe for its nectar and pollen plant. It is a high protein food for many animals. Many birds rely on mistletoe as nesting material and food. Even butterflies use its nectar as food and lay their eggs on the plants. It's hard to say if the mistletoe is a pest or food source. Being semi-parasitic( it absorbs minerals, food and water from a living tree branch it latches onto)and if a host tree is overly infested it can even die.