A quick rant, partly to test whether blogging direct from ScribeFire really works. In my online mistletoe ramblings, I often come across sites that have holly labelled as mistletoe – and they’re nearly all in the US.  But how can anyone mistake holly – a prickly-leaved red-berried bush/tree for mistletoe, a totally non-prickly small tree parasite whose characteristic species (not all) have definitively white berries. I don’t know – but perhaps the clue is in […]

In ancient traditions Mistletoe has often been associated with lightning, partly because of its forked, lightning-like branching pattern (see the pic) and partly because of its growth on old trees, which are sometimes struck by lightning.  These old traditions have many variants, but usually involve hanging mistletoe in the house, sometimes all year-long, to ward off lightning strikes.  You don't hear much about this these days… but hey, here's a weird news story from Cambodia, […]

Hi, If you’ve dropped by looking for news about mistletoe for the 2008/09 mistletoe season you’re in the wrong place. I’m using the typepad site again this season (don’t know why – I have to pay them and Blogger is free, so maybe I’ll return here soon). But for now point your browser thisaway for mistletoe news…

Just back from the Sheffield Orchards Conference (see blog entry for 3rd Sept) and am full of new ideas and initiatives to take forward in my campaign for better mistletoe management (see 3rd Sept and various rantings from last winter season).  More on all that in due course. But whilst there I was told about Ikea's mistletoe-themed kitchen worktop – which, of course, I just had to investigate.  I assumed it was just one of […]

Hi, If you’ve dropped by looking for news about mistletoe for the 2008/09 mistletoe season you’re in the wrong place. I’m using the typepad site again this season (don’t know why – I have to pay them and Blogger is free, so maybe I’ll return here soon). But for now point your browser thisaway for mistletoe news… Mistletoe Adventures, beginning with Christmas 2005 but extending well into 2006… Jonathan Briggs is a mistletoe enthusiast – […]

A quick update for those keen on knowing about druidic mistletoe events.  The Mistletoe Foundation's mistletoe event for 2008 is unlikely to be in Tenbury Wells as part of the Festival/Auctions this time (so not like the last 3 years).  Instead the suggestion is that the event will be more like the 2004 Mistletoe Foundation event in the Forest of Dean (for info see the reviews on the MF site and/or my blog entries about that time).  More […]

No further news on Tenbury Mistletoe Festival events yet but here are a few that I'm involved in and that will be open to the general public (so not counting those organised by local societies etc, that may only be open to members – will add any of those that are open to the public later): 11th October 2008 As part of the Big Apple Autumn Weekend 2008Living with Mistletoe. One hour pruning demonstration by […]

Off to Sheffield next week for a conference on Orchards and Groves: Their History, Ecology, Culture and Archaeology.  It's at Sheffield Hallam University – and should be a good chance for the great range of people involved in traditional orchards to get together and compare notes – on what's going well, and badly, in traditional orchard conservation.  It's a complex and growing field, with loads of stuff going on (next month's Apple Day celebrations give […]