Show VALUE IS ONLY sentimental mistletoe one of most greatly ad kirea of evergreen plants but Is practically worthless prears none of our evergreen plants rs s more loved and iid adin mired ired than the mistletoe with its modest yellowish green leaves and its clusters ot of bigall white berries for centuries it lias has been considered an important ilea ture of the christmas decoration bet in regard to the hie real value of the ahe plant tile mistletoe Is practically worthless worth lers lefis it Is a small shrub comprising more than four hundred known species mostly tropical and in the eastern and southern parts of the united states the common mistletoe STOWS grows on various species of deciduous trees in europe it seems to prefer the appletree apple tree to any other hov it sends its roots through the bark of the tree and draws sustenance from the tap cap however it Is only a partial parasite fur for it has green leaves chich enable it to so some work ork in making food tor for itself in some species of mistletoe the lowers flowers gre are nahe those ol of other species are more modest the pistils and stamens do not grow within the same flower or even on the same ame but the flowers grow on one plant and the ahe on another the berries contain elal seeds surrounded round ed by a very sticky substance I 1 from which birdlime may be made this birdlime lb hi spread upon places frequented bj b birds to impede their movements movement and render them ea easily captured in a similar way it may be used to snare ground squirrels and ot other her small ani animals nials this Is the only practical pr use that has ever been made ot of the mistletoe the plant grows growa very slowly and not until it Is tour four years old does it bear its first white translucent berries however it dralus drains the vital juices necessary to the growth growl it of the tree and abd when many y bunches find lodgment upon 6 the barn tree they ultimately ti cause caust its decline and death shining light |