Mistletoe, a plant that was traditionally revered by druids and which provides food for many birds in winter, could vanish within 20 years, according to the National Trust.Conservationists say the decline of apple orchards, where mistletoe grows, could cause the plant to vanish. The National Trust is campaigning for orchard owners and gardeners to protect their old fruit trees and to consider cultivating the plant.
You can read the news story on The Guardian website at http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/dec/07/mistletoe-vanish-20-years-national-trust
Details of the campaign, including details of events such as fruit tree pruning workshops, can be found here: http://www.orchardnetwork.org.uk/
The photo shows mistletoe on sale at Middle Farm apple and cider orchards
Previous related posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/12/who-killed-cock-robin.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/02/archaeologists-find-site-of-golden.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2008/12/mistletoe-facts-and-folklore.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/02/magical-uses-for-apple-wood.html
1 comment:
Huh. I could see commercially-harvested mistletoe becoming hard to come by, but it grows in such a wide variety of trees that I have a problem seeing it disappear completely. Still, no reason not to cultivate it, it's a wonderful plant.
Post a Comment