Charlotte:
The bright green leaves of mistletoe spread festive vibes are excellent eye candy during the winter holidays. Through the snowy winters, while many trees shed their leaves and it’s barren outside, there we have the Christmas favorites mistletoe and Christmas trees in our homes.
Mistletoe Trouble
But is all greenery positive? Can mistletoe be a cheerful garden addition with no adverse facts? Well, no. If you are a gardening enthusiast, you might want to review the points on mistletoe listed below before trying to add this plant to your garden.
Parasitic Plant
Mistletoe is a parasitic plant that grows on other trees and sucks all the nutrients from the host. It hurts the trees and drains them of needed food supplies, ultimately killing them. No trees, including cacti, are immune to the wrath of mistletoe. A tree inspection can identify this plant before it does harm. So, the kissing plant isn’t quite so romantic now, is it?
Should You Be Worried About Mistletoe In Your Garden?
Knowing the facts about mistletoe and the harm it can cause to your garden, you surely need to be careful. Most mistletoe infections are very mild. Cedar, Red Oak, and Hackberry are the commonly infected trees. But you should watch its growth closely. Simple pruning and checking from time to time can help combat the uncontrolled mistletoe growth in your garden.
Measures To Avoid Mistletoe Infection
First, mistletoe mostly grows in and is harvested from the wild. It does not grow in cold climates. So, you need only worry if you live in warmer temperatures.
It is easy to spot in the fall once leaves have dropped because it is an evergreen that grows high up in deciduous trees. It looks like a green clump of leaves or a nest.
The foremost thing is a timely tree inspection in your garden. Harvesting mistletoe can be tricky since it grows so high off the ground. You can either cut off the tree branches that support the scrub or use a ladder or cherry picker and trim off the leaves and berries in bundles.
Mistletoe grows very slowly, and most people have little success in propagating it in a garden or yard setting.
If you live in mistletoe’s growth zone and it’s invading the trees on your property, contact a local arborist for recommendations on eradicating it.
Treescape Can Help
If you need a tree inspection, contact Treescape. Our tree experts can recommend a plan to maintain healthy trees on your property—Call 704-598-6641 (Charlotte) or 704-867-4100 (Gastonia) to set up an appointment today.