Mistletoe
Parts Usually Used
American mistletoe: Leaves European mistletoe: Plant, berries, young twigs
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
European Mistletoe American mistletoe: An evergreen, semi-parasitic plant that grows on other trees, most commonly the poplar and the apple. It bears small yellow flowers in early spring, but better known are its pearly berries. The branching woody stem is swollen at the nodes and bears opposite, leathery, yellowish-green, obovate to elliptic leaves which are hairy when young but glabrous at maturity.
The flowers grow in jointed spikes, developing into mucilaginous, white berries. European mistletoe: An evergreen, semiparasitic plant found on the branches of deciduous trees. Roots growing from the yellowish-green, forked stem penetrate through the bark into the wood of the host. The leaves are opposite, leathery, yellow-green, and narrowly obovate. Pale yellow or green flowers appear from March to May, the female developing into sticky white berries which ripen from September to November.
The Chinese mistletoe (Loranthus yadoriki) Sang-chi-sheng; or (Lorantus kempferi) Sung-lo.
Where Found
American mistletoe: Eastern, southern and western United States. European mistletoe: Found in Europe and northern Asia.
Medicinal Properties
American mistletoe: Emetic, nervine. European mistletoe: Cardiac, diuretic, stimulant, vasodilator, narcotic, antispasmodic, nervine
Legends, Myths and Stories
Mistletoe is an evergreen shrub which clings to its host tree high up among the branches and gains its nourishment by penetrating the bark of its host with its roots and purloining what sap it requires. It is peculiar in the manner of its growth. The branches turn always toward the object to which the plant is attached, a curious habit which made the ancients think of it as a visible god protecting its sacred tree and which aroused in all early peoples so much of wonder.
Mistletoe (the “golden bough”) was chief of the seven sacred herbs of the Druids, and others being vervain, henbane, primrose, pulsatilla, clover and wolf’s bane. Readers keen to follow the Druidic example should gather their mistletoe on the sixth day of the moon’s waning. Mistletoe appears in many Greek and Roman myths, and is reputed to have been used to make Christ’s cross (Viscum album).
Often of religious importance, mistletoe figured in folk lore tales and mythology in every country where it grew. The power of this herb is of renewing itself when cut, one reason why it was held in mystic honor. In all countries it was worshipped as the soul and embodiment of the holy forest. To the Norseman only the “mistil” could inflict injury on the Sun God, Baldur; to the Roman only the “viscuan” could unlock the door of Hades for Aeneas to enter; to the English Druids only “Misleta” cut from an oak by the light of the moon could give protection to man.
Culpeper spelled this herb as misselto.
Uses
Historical herbalists utilized American mistletoe for nervous debility, convulsions, and heart problems, and it was also traditionally employed as an oral contraceptive. Historical traditions similarly employed European mistletoe as a remedy for dropsy, convulsions, and St. Vitus dance, as well as to strengthen the nerves and support the circulation. Herbalists sometimes combined European mistletoe with bear’s garlic and hawthorn, believing the mixture addressed the hardening of the arteries.
Externally, practitioners applied washes made from European mistletoe to chilblains and prepared compresses to place over varicose veins.
Warning
American mistletoe: The berries are poisonous, and children’s deaths have been attributed to eating them. Do not use without medical supervision. May cause dermatitis. Do not use for blood pressure regulation without medical supervision. European mistletoe: Use with care, preferably under medical direction. Large doses have a detrimental effect on heart action. Also eating the berries can be dangerous, especially for children.
Do not use if Hypertensive or persons with heart trouble, particularly in large doses. Consult a medical doctor.
Bibliography
The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. The Complete Medicinal Herbal , by Penelope Ody, Dorling Kindersley, Inc, 232 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, First American Edition, copyright 1993 Chinese Medicinal Herbs , compiled by Shih-Chen Li, Georgetown Press, San Francisco, California, 1973. , Loma Linda, CA 92354, Original copyright 1939, revised edition 1994 Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R.
, Horticultural Hall, 300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, 1973 Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A. , Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10000 The Nature Doctor: A Manual of Traditional and Complementary Medicine , by Dr. A. , 27 Pine Street (Box 876) New Canaan, CT. 06840-0876. Copyright Verlag A. , Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes.
, Copyright 1988, published 1992 American Folk Medicine , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, 1973 The Yoga of Herbs: An Ayurvedic Guide to Herbal Medicine , by Dr. David Frawley & Dr. Vasant Lad, Lotus Press, Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, Second edition, 1988. Taber’s Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary , 15th Edition, F. A. , 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023