".....This is quite a silly thing to say considering that mistletoe is a
parasitic plant and which will eventually kill the tree if left alone
..........."
My comments were in no way silly as the following article will show, just
the difference in mentality and view point between UK and the US.

Mistletoe
Mistletoe is an aerial parasite that has no roots of its own and lives off
the tree that it attaches itself to. Without that tree it would die.
Mistletoe was thought to be sacred by ancient Europeans. Druid priests
employed it in their sacrifices to the gods while Celtic people felt it
possessed miraculous healing powers. In fact, in the Celtic language
mistletoe means "all-heal." It not only cured diseases, but could also
render poisons harmless, make humans and animals prolific, keep one safe
from witchcraft, protect the house from ghosts and even make them speak.
With all of this, it was thought to bring good luck to anyone privileged to
have it.

Norsemen offer us a beautiful symbolic myth about mistletoe. The story goes
that Mistletoe was the sacred plant of Frigga, goddess of love and the
mother of Balder, the god of the summer sun. Balder had a dream of death,
which greatly alarmed his mother, for should he die, all life on earth would
end. In an attempt to keep this from happening, Frigga went at once to air,
fire, water, earth, and every animal and plant seeking a promise that no
harm would come to her son. Balder now could not be hurt by anything on
earth or under the earth. But Balder had one enemy, Loki, god of evil and he
knew of one plant that Frigga had overlooked in her quest to keep her son
safe. It grew neither on the earth nor under the earth, but on apple and oak
trees. It was lowly mistletoe. So Loki made an arrow tip of the mistletoe,
gave to the blind god of winter, Hoder, who shot it, striking Balder dead.
The sky paled and all things in earth and heaven wept for the sun god. For
three days each element tried to bring Balder back to life. Frigga, the
goddess and his mother finally restored him. It is said the tears she shed
for her son turned into the pearly white berries on the mistletoe plant and
in her joy Frigga kissed everyone who passed beneath the tree on which it
grew. The story ends with a decree that who should ever stand under the
humble mistletoe, no harm should befall them, only a kiss, a token of love.

What could be more natural than to translate the spirit of this old myth
into a Christian way of thinking and accept the mistletoe as the emblem of
that Love which conquers Death? Its medicinal properties, whether real or
imaginary, make it a just emblematic of that Tree of Life, the leaves of
which are for the healing of the nations thus paralleling it to the Virgin
Birth of Christ.

You might also find these link of interest / use

http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTN...37.html#DAMAGE

http://www.mistletoegift.com/products.htm
..

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk