Blogroll , Current Affairs , Gardening , Media , Mistletoe , Orchard , social history

Mistletoe ‘crop’ 2018 – looking good, ripening early?

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

Almost November, so time to look at how mistletoe is looking for Christmas this year. And, again (this is several years in a row now) it’s looking fairly good.  The female plants I’ve looked at are festooned with berries and it would seem we have yet another ‘bumper crop’. Of course it’s not a crop, not in the conventional sense of something grown for harvest, as most simply grows where it wants to and isn’t actively […]

Blogroll , Mistletoe , Science , social history

Birdlime #2 – Sticky Bombs

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

The sticky mistletoe uses I mentioned last week – catching birds with mistletoe glue  – seem tame compared with some of the other activities associated with Birdlime. Again, whether it really was ever made from mistletoe may be debatable – but there are certainly strong traditions. You can even buy modern versions of it, and though I doubt there’s much mistletoe in them, the name does stick (no pun intended). Here, for example is Nuovo Vischio Marrone, […]

Blogroll , Current Affairs , Gardening , Media , Mistletoe , Science

Mythletoe Growing Myths

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

Every year. EVERY year.  The media, even the gardening media, peddle rubbishy old nonsensical myths about how to grow mistletoe.  Yesterday BBC Radio 4 Gardener’s Question Time were telling people to make a hole in the bark, stick the seed in and, wait for it…..  seal it in with Sealing Wax!!! An astonishing thing to suggest – not least because who has a stick of Sealing Wax handy these days? Meanwhile Smallholder Magazine’s January issue […]

Blogroll , Current Affairs , Media , Mistletoe , social history

Mistletoe Kissing #1 – the good side

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

Every year there are media stories on – how shall I put it? – the potential ‘nuisance’ caused by the mistletoe kissing custom. Usually this centres on the dreaded Office Party. But this year is worse than most – the press, inspired by the avalanche of molestation stories, is overflowing with dire warnings about mistletoe. I should report on that, as it is a serious issue and there are ways (mistletoe ‘etiquette’) to at least […]

Blogroll , Current Affairs , Food and Drink , Mistle Thrush , Mistletoe , Science , social history

Birdlime #1 – Sticky Ends

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

Turdus ipse sibi malum cacat, an old latin proverb, relates directly to mistletoe, and to the capture of birds.  It translates as ‘the thrush excretes its own trouble (or death)’ and is all about Birdlime, a sticky substance once used widely to capture small birds.  One of the traditional, and perhaps fundamental, ingredients of Birdlime, was mistletoe, especially the sticky juice form the berries.  The proverb is about mistle thrushes, eating mistletoe berries and creating […]

Blogroll , Current Affairs , Gardening , Media , Mistle Thrush , Mistletoe , Orchard , Religion , social history

Radio Gloucestershire, despite the snow

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

I was talking mistletoe, and mistletoe Grow-Kits, with Kate Clark from Radio Gloucestershire this morning. In the studio in Gloucester, despite the snow. Can’t add audio direct to the blog but click the link below to go an extract of the mistletoe bit: http://mistletoe.org.uk/audio/BBCGlos10thDec2017.mp3?_=1 Or, for the whole programme try iplayer here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p001y3bx/episodes/player And for Grow-Kits themselves try here:  https://englishmistletoeshop.co.uk or here: http://growmistletoe.co.uk

Blogroll , Current Affairs , Media , Mistletoe , social history

Two more mistletoe men gone…

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

Two more grand old mistletoe men were lost to us in 2017 – Reg Farmer and Alec Wall – both of Tenbury Wells.  I first met them both back in 2003, or maybe 2004, I can’t recall exactly.  They were hoping to promote Tenbury Wells’ mistletoe heritage at a time when it seemed that the mistletoe auctions were soon to cease. Others involved were Stan Yapp (the ‘Mistletoe King’, who died in 2013 aged 80) […]

Blogroll , Current Affairs , Gardening , Media , Mistletoe , Science , social history

Tenbury Auctions Week #2

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

Another mistletoe auction this week – and another week with lots of lots.  All very well-berried and mostly nice green foliage, so good stuff.  Some lots were looking a little yellow here and there. The standard yellow auction labels tend to accentuate any yellow in the foliage – which is a little unfortunate! Prices this week were higher than last week “1st Quality” fetched up to £3 per kg and averaged £1.50, “2nd Quality” fetched […]

Blogroll , Current Affairs , Doctor Who , Media , Mistletoe , Orchard , social history , Travel

A wander around in the nucleus of mistletoe country

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

Berkeley Power Station, the UK’s first commercial nuclear power plant, sits on the edge of the River Severn in Gloucestershire. Opened in 1962 and closed in 1989 it still dominates the area, though it is now in advanced stages of decommission. And it is surrounded by mistletoe, as this is the nucleus (geddit??) of UK mistletoe country. Its sister Oldbury (operating 1967-2012, famous for featuring in Blake’s 7 and Doctor Who episodes) is visible a little […]

Blogroll , Current Affairs , Doctor Who , druids , Religion , Science , social history

Whovian mistletoe, again

by: Jonathan BriggsPosted on:

It’s August! Time to spot the six scarce, under-recorded in the UK, mistletoe insects! Which I discussed at a Biodiversity Workshop in Glastonbury a couple of weeks ago. But no, not yet. It’s August, the silly season for news. So here’s some silly news instead. Last night I watched the finale of the current Doctor Who series… and there was mistletoe in it! Understated, unremarked-on, but definitely there and used almost-certainly-deliberately (in my view) in […]