Arceuthobium Sp. - Dwarf Mistletoe

Family: Santalaceae - Christmas Mistletoe (Previously in Viscaceae)^[E-flora]

"Perennial herb, shrub, glabrous. Stem: generally < 20 cm, ± angled at least when young, ± yellow, ± green, brown, purple; branches whorled or in 1 plane. Leaf: < 1 mm, scale-like. Inflorescence: generally spikes, peduncle short; flowers generally opposite, 4-ranked, less often whorled or 1, terminal. Staminate flower: perianth parts generally 3–4; anthers ± 1-chambered. Pistillate flower: perianth parts 2, persistent, minute. Fruit: generally 2–5 mm, broadly fusiform-spheric, 2-colored (1 color below, 1 above); pedicel short, recurved; seeds projected to 15 m by fruit explosion.
26 species: temperate, tropics northern hemisphere. (Greek: juniper, life) [Nickrent et al. 2004 Amer J Bot 91:125–138] Most important of timber pathogens; most species cause abnormal branching (witches' brooms) in hosts. Recent molecular studies support reunification of many western North American species under Arceuthobium campylopodum." ^[Jepson]

Local Species;

1. Arceuthobium americanum - American dwarf mistletoe ^[E-flora]
2. Arceuthobium tsugense - Hemlock Dwarf Mistletoe ^[E-flora]

Non-local Species(??);

• Arceuthobium campylopodum - Western Dwarf Mistletoe

Key to the Species and Taxonomic Notes

• 1. Flowers unstalked or the female ones with stalks up to 1 mm long, usually in pairs at each node; stems over over 2 mm thick and at least 3 cm long; plants parasitic on many genera of Pinaceae.................Arceuthobium campylopodium
• 1. Flowers terminal on short lateral branches, the branches bearing the male flowers often more than 2 per node; stems scarcely as much as 2 mm thick and usually less than 3 cm long; plants parasitic on Pinus or Pseudotsuga.
• 2. Secondary branches of twigs lying in the same plane, thus flat and fanlike; stems scarcely 1 mm thick; plants parasitic on Pseudotsuga......................Arceuthobium douglasii
• 2. Secondary branches of twigs distinctly whorled, not fanlike; stems over 1 mm thick; plants parasitic on Pinus...............................Arceuthobium americanum ^[E-flora]

Lore

Mistletoe used to be something nice to eat, but the Coyote got mean with it & put it so as nobody can eat it. Tast’ú•t grows on dead trees, like a head of lettuce. [It's an old] Salmon River story. Coyote came upon girls picking mistletoe, it used to be something good to eat, & when the girls refused Coyote he got mad at them & said all right, I will turn what you are gathering then. And so, mistletoe has been no good to eat every since. [Harrington, 1942]

Medicinal Uses

• Unspecified Part
  • A. campylopodum: Cold infusion used internally and externally as ceremonial medicine.[2][UM-D-Eth]
• Antihemorrhagic
  • A. americanum: Bella Coola - Decoction of plant taken as potent medicine for lung hemorrhages. Carrier - Decoction taken as a potent medicine for mouth hemorrhages [1-UMDEth]
• Dietary Aid
  • A. americanum: Carrier - Decoction of plant taken for emaciation and tuberculosis [1-UMDEth]
• Tuberculosis Remedy
  • A. americanum: Carrier - Decoction of plant taken for mouth hemorrhages and tuberculosis [1-UMDEth]

Uses of Non-local Sp.

Digger Pine Dwarf Mistletoe - Arceuthobium occidentale

• Decoction of plant taken for stomachaches.[3][UM-D-Eth]

Pineland Dwarf Mistletoe - Arceuthobium Vaginatum

• Decoction of plant used as a ceremonia medicine[2][UM-D-Eth]

References

1. [E-flora] http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Arceuthobium americanum&redblue=Both&lifeform=4, Accessed Jan 18, 2015
2. [Harrington, 1942] Harrington, John P. 1942. Alsea, Siuslaw, Coos, Southwest Oregon Athapaskan: Vocabularies, Linguistic Notes, Ethnographic and Historical Notes. John Peabody Harrington Papers, Alaska/Northwest Coast, in National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC.http://ethnobotanywesternoregon.wordpress.com/category/ethnobotany/page/2/
3. [Jepson] Job Kuijt, 2013. Arceuthobium, in Jepson Flora Project (eds.) Jepson eFlora, http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_IJM.pl?tid=13877, accessed on Jan 18 2015
4. [UMD-Eth] Accessed Jan 18, 2015 http://herb.umd.umich.edu
   • [1]# Smith, Harlan I. 1929 Materia Medica of the Bella Coola and Neighboring Tribes of British Columbia. National Museum of Canada Bulletin 56:47-68 (p. 56)
   • [2]Vestal, Paul A. 1952 The Ethnobotany of the Ramah Navaho. Papers of the Peabody Museum of American Archaeology and Ethnology 40(4):1-94 (p. 23)
   • [3]Chestnut, V. K. 1902 Plants Used by the Indians of Mendocino County, California. Contributions from the U.S. National Herbarium 7:295-408. (p. 345)

Images

• [1] Stan Shebs, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
• [2] Brytten Steed, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
• [3] Stan Shebs, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Arceuthobium americanum - American dwarf mistletoe

"General: Perennial parasitic shrub; stems yellow-green, smooth, usually tufted, 2-18 cm long; segments usually 1-2 mm thick; accessory branches usually several per node, whorled, in more than 1 plane." ^{[IFBC-E-flora]}

Habitat/Range: "Parasitic on Pinus in the lowland, steppe and montane zones; infrequent in S BC, rare W of Coast-Cascade Mountains; E to MB and S to CO, UT, NV and CA." ^{[IFBC-E-flora]}

Status: Native. ^[E-flora]

References

• [E-flora] Arceuthobium americanum, http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Arceuthobium americanum&redblue=Both&lifeform=4, Accessed March 29, 2020

Arceuthobium tsugense - Hemlock Dwarf Mistletoe

Subtaxa present in B.C.;

• Arceuthobium tsugense ssp. contortae - Native
• Arceuthobium tsugense ssp. mertensianae - Native
• Arceuthobium tsugense ssp. tsugense - Native ^[E-flora]

References

• [E-flora] Arceuthobium tsugense, http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Arceuthobium%20tsugense&redblue=Both&lifeform=4, Accessed March 29, 2020