Growing Mistletoe (Viscum album)

I have grown Mistletoe (Viscum album) now for quite a few years with very good success. Over the years, many people having seen the plants growing on various trees where I work have asked me how to grow it and I have always obliged them.

The usual enquiry about cutting into the tree with a knife is soon dismissed as complete bunkum! “When was the last time you saw a Mistle Thrush carrying a pen knife?” is my usual diplomatic response.

First, select a suitable host tree. I have found these to be the most suitable:

Malus (Apple)
Sorbus (Rowan’s)
Acer (Just the Norway maple Acer platanoides and surprisingly, the Japanese Maple Acer palmatum so far)
Amelanchier (June Berry)
Crataegus (Hawthorn).

And now to the actual application of seed to the host. Just do what the birds do. When the Mistle Thrush (or Wood Pigeon, another of the plants distributors) grabs a fully ripe berry, the seed often squirts just far enough out of the flesh and hangs or sticks to the side of the birds bill. The flesh of the berry is swallowed and the bird often just wipes the annoying sticky seed onto a branch. The sticky viscin surrounding the seed then hardens after a few days permanently sticking it down to the branch.

After a few months, the embryo (often two in a single seed) will germinate sending out two radicles.

As can be seen in these photo’s (especially the close up) the ends of the radicle expand into a sort of disc (the haustorium). This plants itself against the hosts stem and starts to secrete an enzyme to dissolve it’s way into the cambium layer just under the bark. Once inside, the tree is effectively infected.



By early summer the following year (yes, this early stage is slow), this is what you should see.

The small plant slightly behind is a year or so older than the ones in the foreground.

It will be three to four years before you have clumps like this on my Sorbus scalaris.














Because Viscum album has seperate male and female plants, it is important for berries that you sow plenty. My Sorbus scalaris has about fifty plants on it and it seems to be quite healthy though I have perhaps overdone it!!! I put a lot on because sometimes, they just don’t take for one reason or another. These all seem to have done!

Good luck if you want to try it yourself. Just don’t cut the tree. All this does is open it up for attack by microbes and fungi.

Happy gardening!