Column: Mistletoe

Luke Babb recounts their attempts – not all of them successful – to bring the spirit of mistletoe into their Yuletide traditions.

Mistletoe Festival in England grows, honoring ancient tradition

UNITED KINGDOM — Every year, the sleepy little market town of Tenbury Wells, near the border of England and Wales in the county of Worcestershire, hosts an annual Mistletoe Festival. Mistletoe is an important product in this corner of England, due to its numerous apple orchards. Worcestershire and neighbouring Herefordshire mark the start of cider and perry country, which covers most of South West England). As Suzanne Thomas of the Mistletoe Foundation states: “Viscum album, the English mistletoe is such an amazing plant. It has a wonderful energy and to see it growing in the trees locally is just so lovely.