Was honoured in many a sacred rhyme
By bards and by singers of high degree,
When cut from its place on the old oak tree
By white-robed Druid with golden knife
For they thought it a magical Tree of Life:
And many a promise and holy vow
There was solemnly sworn on the mistletoe bough….
Steeleye Span 2004
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| Opposite the Reserve |
Three large trees close by the Reserve have clumps of mistletoe in their canopies. Winter is a good time to see it, when the trees’ leaves have fallen, and the evergreen, near-spherical sprays are most obvious; at other times the hemi-parasitic growth may be hidden.
On the towpath towards Dudbridge
Apple trees are a favourite host for the plant, as are lime and poplar, so there would probably have been much more to see when there were orchards hereabouts at Hilly Orchard and on the QEII field. (Have a look at the copy of the 1880s Ordinance Survey map under Hilly Orchard bridge). Less common hosts include ash, blackthorn, hawthorn, Rowan, sycamore and willow.
By Hilly Orchard bridge
There are separate male and female plants. The seeds, in the waxy, white berries of the female (seen from early autumn to late spring), are coated in a tacky gum, viscin, so any birds feeding on the berries get their beaks coated. The birds then wipe them off on a tree branch, the gum hardening and holding the seed secure. Any seeds eaten also get deposited, hence the name mistletoe, literally ‘dung-twig’. Once germinated the roots penetrate the bark, taking water and nutrients from their host.
Male mistletoe 
Female mistletoe
Thrushes in particular feast on the winter berries, notably mistle thrush and fieldfares and redwings, and visiting blackcaps too. There are also some insect specialists like the mistletoe marble moth and the mistletoe weevil.
Further information and images
The Smithsonian Magazine: the Biology of Mistletoe
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/biology-mistletoe-180976601/
The Wildlife Trusts: Mistletoe
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/wildflowers/mistletoe
