Phoradendron tomentosum
Family: Viscaceae
Plant Description: Shrubby, woody parasite with stems to 60 cm or longer and thick evergreen ovate-elliptic leaves, 1.7-5 cm long. Hairy on younger parts. Flowers minute, sunken in segmented spikes, unisexual with the male and female on separate plants. Fruits 4-5 mm wide, whitish drupe.
Field Identification: Green tangle of growing parasitic plant usually attached in upper portions of the tree. Very conspicuous in deciduous trees during the Winter.
Plant Trivia: Seven mistletoe species grow in Texas. Although mistletoe is green and can conduct photosynthesis, it cannot make all the complex chemicals it needs so it extracts them from its host tree. Continued growth can kill a tree.
Occurrence: Common, mostly on hackberry and mesquite trees.
Bloom Period: October – March
Plant Use: It is a host plant for the great purple hairstreak butterfly.
