Northern Research Station

Title: Mistletoes on Hardwoods in the United States (FIDL)

Author: Scharpf, Robert F.; Hawksworth, Frank G.

Date: 1974

Source: Forest Insect & Disease Leaflet 147. [Berkley, CA:] U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station

Station ID: FIDL-PSW-147

Description: The traditional use of mistletoes during holiday seasons, their involvement in folklore and legend, their consumption by domestic and wild animals, and their use for medicinal purposes make mistletoes of widespread interest to the public. The fact that these plants are parasites that injure and eventually kill trees both conifers and hardwoods is not well known. Two genera of mistletoes grow in the United States: the "dwarf mistletoes" (genus Arceuthobium),and the "true mistletoes" (genus Phoradendron). An introduced mistletoe, the European Viscum album, has been found only in northern California--the apple growing region around Sebastopol and Santa Rosa. This mistletoe was presumably brought into this area inadvertently in the early l900's on apple stock from Europe. Since then, it has spread over about a 16 square mile area, and is found on at least 20 other native and introduced hardwood tree and shrub species.

Keywords: Parasite, decline, mortality.

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Citation

Scharpf, Robert F.; Hawksworth, Frank G.  1974.  Mistletoes on Hardwoods in the United States (FIDL).   Forest Insect & Disease Leaflet 147. [Berkley, CA:] U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station.