Plant Name
Scientific Name: Phoradendron juniperinum
Synonym: Phoradendron ligatum
Common Name: Juniper Mistletoe
Plant Characteristics
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Shrub, Subshrub, Hemiparasite
Arizona Native Status: Native
Habitat: Upland, Mountain
Flower Color: Inconspicuous (greenish)
Flowering Season: Summer
Height: Stems to 7.8 inches (20 cm) long
Description: The tiny, greenish male and female flowers are on separate plants. The female flowers are followed by small, round, white, pinkish, or reddish berries. Birds eat the berries and are responsible for spreading and "planting" the seeds in their droppings. The leaves are tiny, scale-like, and in opposite pairs on the smooth, branched, green stems. This aerial hemiparasite grows on the woody branches of Junipers (Juniperus species).
Classification
Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Rosidae
Order: Santalales
Family: Viscaceae – Christmas Mistletoe family
Genus: Phoradendron Nutt. – mistletoe
Species: Phoradendron juniperinum Engelm. ex A. Gray – juniper mistletoe
More About This Plant