WorldFloraDB - Viscum album

Characteristics

A shrub which grows as a parasite on other plants. The leaves do not have stalks. They are oblong and wedge shaped. They have 2-5 veins along it. The flowers are reddish. The fruit are oval. They are white and transparent.

Life form

perennial

Growth form

shrub

Growth support

parasite

Foliage retention

evergreen

Sexuality

dioecy

Pollination

entomogamy

Spread

endozoochory

Mature width (meter)

1.0

Mature height (meter)

1.0

Root system

-

Rooting depth (meter)

-

Root diameter (meter)

-

Flower color

Blooming months

Jan	Feb	Mar
Apr	May	Jun
Jul	Aug	Sep
Oct	Nov	Dec

Fruit color

Fruiting months

Jan	Feb	Mar
Apr	May	Jun
Jul	Aug	Sep
Oct	Nov	Dec

Nitrogen fixer

-

Photosynthetic pathway

c3

Environment

It is a temperate plant. In Nepal it grows between 600-2300 m altitude. In Pakistan it grows up to 3,000 m altitude. It grows on tree trunks. It is a parasite on Horse-chestnut, Willow, Apricot, Poplar and walnut.

More

A parasitic plant, growing on the branches of many trees, especially poplars, apples, chestnut and birch and especially on calcareous soils. Not usually found on conifers.

Light
Soil humidity
Soil texture
Soil acidity
Soil nutriment
Hardiness (USDA)

Usage

The ripe fruit are edible raw. They are chewed by children as a substitute for chewing gum.

Uses	gum material medicinal poison social use
Edible	fruits
Therapeutic use	Aphrodisiacs (fruit), Cardiotonic agents (fruit), Diuretics (fruit), Laxatives (fruit), General tonic for rejuvenation (fruit), Anti-inflammatory agents (stem), Asthma (unspecified), Astringent (unspecified), Chorea (unspecified), Diuretic (unspecified), Emetic (unspecified), Epilepsy (unspecified), Hypertension (unspecified), Hysteria (unspecified), Lumbago (unspecified), Malaria (unspecified), Metrorrhagia (unspecified), Narcotic (unspecified), Nervine (unspecified), Otitis (unspecified), Piles (unspecified), Poison (unspecified), Purgative (unspecified), Sedative (unspecified), Spasm (unspecified), Tumor (unspecified), Uterus (unspecified), Cancer (unspecified), Styptic (unspecified), Tonic (unspecified), Antiseptic (unspecified), Arteriosclerosis (unspecified), Arthrosis (unspecified), Cardiac (unspecified), Cardiotonic (unspecified), Galactogogue (unspecified), Hemorrhage (unspecified), Megalohepaty (unspecified), Megalospleny (unspecified), Anti-arrhythmia agents (unspecified), Anti-inflammatory agents (unspecified), Antineoplastic agents (unspecified), Diuretics (unspecified), Ear diseases (unspecified), Neoplasms (unspecified), Nervous system diseases (unspecified), Splenomegaly (unspecified), Wounds and injuries (unspecified)
Human toxicity	toxic (whole)
Animal toxicity	weak toxic (whole)

Cultivation

Plants are grown from seed.

Mode	seedlings
Germination duration (days)	-
Germination temperacture (C°)	-
Germination luminosity	-
Germination treatment	-
Minimum temperature (C°)	-
Optimum temperature (C°)	-
Size	-
Vigor	-
Productivity	-