Christmas Holly - Mistletoe and Ivy

Green Christmas

Christmas is the perfect time to become more acquainted with the natural greenery that surrounds you and Christmas holly and ivy can create a wonderful country Christmas look for your home during the festive season. Cheap Christmas decorations are natural and earthy decorations.

Take a walk out into the country-side and look around you, many trees are completely covered in ivy that is there for the taking, trees don’t like it’s stranglehold on their trunks and thrive when it is removed so you are actually doing them a favour. Holly is another matter and it is not advisable to take holly without the express permission of the owner of the tree. Miseltoe is much rarer and only grows in a few specific places I have seen it in Brittany, France and in Shropshire, England. Miseltoe is a parasitic plant and feeds off the host tree but does not cause any damage to it. Both Holly and Ivy are cut annually and often sold wholesale in a Christmas market where buyers come from far and wide to stock up with Christmas greenery.

The verse in his poem ‘Christmas’ by John Betjemen, tells us of how holly is used as a natural decoration for the local church.

‘The holly in the windy hedge
And round the Manor House the yew
Will soon be stripped to deck the ledge,
The altar, font and arch and pew,
So that villagers can say
'The Church looks nice' on Christmas Day’

Holly looks wonderful when it comes complete with its own scarlet berries, but it is relatively rare to get it that way as the birds tend to eat them before it gets to the market place. If the berries are missing from your bunch of holly then buy some scarlet ribbon and add the colour in this way. Holly is a deciduous tree with glossy dark green leaves that will enhance your Christmas scene. Traditionally, wreaths to hang on your front door are made from holly and can be further decorated with ribbons, and baubles.

Miseltoe has milky white berries and paler green leaves and a little goes a long way in a home environment. Tie it with a red ribbon and place it in strategic places so that people can take advantage of the opportunity to kiss the person that they particularly would like to kiss. It is a great excuse and has been the catalyst for many a relationship.

As Christmas symbols the traditional carol ‘The First Tree in the Greenwood’ tells of the importance of holly in the Christmas story. It goes through the colours of red, green and black in the colour of the berries that the holly bush bears and for each one it tells of Mary who bore the saviour. The final verse is as follows;

Now the holly bears a berry, as blood is it red,
Then trust we our Saviour, who rose from the dead:
And Mary bore Jesus Christ,
Our Saviour to be,
And the first tree in the greenwood, it was the holly.

‘The Holly and the Ivy’ is another traditional carol collected by Cecil Sharp that tells of the importance of these trees/plants within the nativity story although the fertility symbolism of male/female and holly/ivy is ancient.

The holly and the ivy, when they are both full grown, Of all the trees that are in the wood, the holly bears the crown.

Refrain:

oh, the rising of the sun and the running of the deer, The playing of the merry organ, sweet singing in the choir. The holly bears a blossom as white as lily flower, And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ to be our sweet saviour

Holly also plays an important part in the final dish of the Christmas party, it is placed on top of the plum pudding which is then flamed in brandy and carried to the dinner table in a triumphant finale to celebrate Christmas.

The young leaves of the holly can be gathered throughout the year, dried in the shade and then used as an infusion against the common cold, influenza, bronchitis, rheumatism and arthritis. Do not use the red fruits as they are poisonous.

Christmas Holly is a versatile and attractive plant that may be used throughout your home as a delightful decoration for the Christmas season.