I am thinking I can only squeeze one more paragraph on the seasonal plants for December. So I will mention the Mistletoe, that sacred Druid plant, once harvested with a golden sickle. Its curious name harkens back to an Old English, Norse or Germanic word for twig, but the use has become obscured. It is a parasitic plant, a vine that twists around the host plant, inserting its stem into the tissue to gain nutrition. Some photosynthesis occurs in some species. One western European species became associated with Christmas. Beneath the mistle it is said, a man may kiss whichever female is standing below.
Nova Scotia’s Dwarf Mistletoes is a small insignificant plant that would not serve to deck the halls, so we import sprigs of the European or American species.
Of course most English-speakers have heard the carol, The Holly and the Ivy. In last week’s piece, I neglected to mention that Holly with its thorny leathery leaves, symbolizes the male while Ivy (English Ivy) refers to the female. Both plants have been used in Christian homes since the 1800s as holiday plants in December.
Christmas Rose and Christmas Cactus are two diverse plants associated with our holidays. Christmas Roses are actually not roses, but Hellebores, a relative of buttercups. Their creamy white flowers are double-petalled and rose like and associated with the holiday season, especially on early postcards. More familiar to Nova Scotian homes, may be the Christmas cactus. This Brazilian cactus displays its pink or red array of flowers near the end of December. Many a home attempts to time flowering with December 24 and 25th. My mother used to relegate the plants to the closet for a few days to delay flowering. It rarely worked other than to break off branches on her 10kg plant!
Wrapping up with a Nova Scotian species, we have the Christmas-fern. This woodland fern sports a crown of evergreen leaves, often seen as green throughout milder winters. To my knowledge, the Christmas association only refers to its being green in December.
May you enjoy the last few weeks of December with family and friends. Happy New Year and here’s hoping we connect again in 2016. See you then!
Dwarf Mistletoe, photo by Sean Blaney
Scrap of Christmas Rose on vintage postcard, from my collection
photo from Southern States, a garden site, Christmas Cactus
Holly and the Ivy, vintage postcard scan from my collection
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