No berries - no kisses

A few decades ago there were several orchards in Arnside. But a combination of housing development plus the ageing and decline of fruit trees sadly changed this situation.
The old people in the village say that there was Mistletoe in all these orchards.
Five years ago we could find only one plant left on an apple tree in a private garden.

Mrs. K. Saw this as a challenge and determined to restore this lost plant.

Attempts in the first two years were not successful. They involved coating berries with bird lime and inserting them in cracks on the bark of apple trees. More research revealed that the berries needed good light to germinate. For the first year or two they are independent of the host tree but gradually small roots force their way through the bark turning the plant into a parasite.

By year three the experiment became a success and there are now four trees in the village with Mistletoe growing on them. We hope that some are male and some are female so that we can get some berries.

It is not until the berries appear that I am allowed to cut a small piece off and hang it in the hallway. Then I can hope to get a kiss from Mrs. K. And who knows perhaps from some other visiting ladies.