A light covering of snow on the mistletoe and holly lots at today’s auctions in Tenbury Wells. This was the first auction of this season (there’re two more – on the 7th and the 14th) and also the first at the new site – the disused part of Tenbury Business Park. The cold weather seemed to jam up my DSLR camera for a while, so I haven’t got many pics of the earliest visitors – members of […]

Well, it looks like a rather chilly mistletoe season this year.  Have already been out at the crack of dawn for a photographer who wanted mistletoe harvesting in frost, and am expecting more early morning mistletoe encounters this week. That recent frosty photo-call was at Day’s Cottage orchards in Gloucestershire, where Dave Kasper was harvesting for Gloucestershire markets.  Rod Kirkpatrick‘s frosty photos made the Daily Telegraph and the Western Daily Press on Saturday – I’ll try and get one of them […]

Accurate data and statistics on the mistletoe trade, and on how people use mistletoe, are very difficult to come by. So, this season we’re launching a Consumer Survey about Mistletoe.  It’s not been done before, and results could be interesting! It’s being called “Mistletoe: Where do you get yours?” and a survey homepage has been set up at www.british.mistletoe.org.uk . Results will be posted up weekly from the first week of December onwards.  Here’s the […]

Have been responding to a few media enquiries about this year’s mistletoe crop. It’s looking fairly good so far – lots of berries on the female plants, just turning fully white now.  So there’ll be a lot of good quality material out there.    That doesn’t mean there’s “‘lots of mistletoe” though.  Just lots of berries on the mistletoe. A “bumper crop” for mistletoe usually means a good quality (e.e. well-berried) crop, not a larger amount. And we’re […]

Silly season definitely here now.  The Daily Mail is reporting a bumper crop of mistletoe because of a resurgence of interest in cider-drinking – specifically Bulmers and Magners.  Their tenuous link is that cider is made from apples, and most mistletoe grows on apple trees. Both true statements of course.   But, er, no, there’s no cause and effect here. Mistletoe grows in profusion in old neglected, mature apple orchards.  Bulmers and Magners harvest from managed, often […]

Well, it’s taken a while to finalise, but here’s the ordering info for the new book – A little book about Mistletoe: We’re publishing this first edition through lulu.com, and so that’s probably the best place to buy it.  Though we will be handling a small stock at the English Mistletoe Shop too. The lulu ordering page is here.  Or you go direct to a preview here. The English Mistletoe Shop ordering page is here.