Why did Harry Potter kiss under the mistletoe?

Christmas is coming soon. If nothing unexpected happens, I will spend Christmas Eve alone, Christmas alone, and New Year's Day alone. How will you spend your time in front of the screen? I don't envy those who have a partner. I can still be happy being single.

Even when celebrating the holidays alone, you should still have a sense of ritual, with a Christmas tree, a Christmas wreath, and... a handful of leaves hanging upside down on the roof.

The Christmas atmosphere is here

Image source: courier-journal.com

Although it is of no use to me, if you have a crush on someone but dare not confess, this leaf - mistletoe (hú) may be your magic weapon to break the relationship. For an excellent teaching case, please refer to Chapter 21 of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix". Harry's first love began under a bunch of mistletoe.

A non-annoying parasite

Let’s put aside the pink bubbles in our heads and learn some knowledge first. The mistletoe we usually refer to mainly refers to several plants in the genus Viscum of the Santalaceae family, of which the most widely distributed are the mistletoe (Viscum coloratum) in East Asia and the white-fruited mistletoe (Viscum album) from Europe to West Asia.

Mistletoe

Image source see watermark

Viscum ginkgo

Image source: wiki

Looking at this name from the perspective of plants, mistletoe is a parasitic plant that lives on oak trees. When it comes to parasitic plants, most of them look hideous. They absorb nutrients and water from other green plants. They are simply "vampires" in the plant world, and they also grab a host plant to pull out.

Their hosts are often crops. Although most parasitic plants do not die directly, farmers often lose their crops. For example, the dodder, which is "weak and unable to take care of itself, but can severely damage soybean production", is also very difficult to remove, and often the soybeans have to be pulled out together.

Cuscuta: strangling fate

Image source: eol.org

Mistletoe is more "friendly" and is a semi-parasitic plant. It absorbs water and nutrients from its host, and it also has green leaves that can photosynthesize. The famous sandalwood is also a semi-parasitic plant. When sandalwood seedlings grow, they run out of nutrients, and their roots are shallow, so they can only absorb nutrients from other plants through the root suckers. Once sandalwood chooses a host, it cannot change it. It is planted with the host, and they are called "husband and wife trees".

Although it is semi-parasitic, it still brings a considerable burden to the host. After the host sheds its leaves, the evergreen mistletoe, which looks like a ball of hair, will make the host look even more...bald.

An apple tree entangled by white mistletoe. The green parts are white mistletoe. Image source: Wikipedia

Let me see which unlucky plant is so miserable?

The "Viscum" in mistletoe refers to the Quercus plant of the Fagaceae family. In addition, it can also parasitize on elm, poplar, willow, birch, pear, plum, apple, maple poplar, alder, and linden plants.

Moreover, the color of the fruits varies depending on the host. According to records, the fruits of mistletoe that parasitize on elm trees are orange-red, those that parasitize on poplar and maple elm are light yellow, and those that parasitize on pear trees and hawthorn are red or yellow.

Some mistletoe berries are orange

Image source: plantarium.ru

These berries contain a sticky juice that can be drawn into threads, which is mainly reflected in the bird droppings. For example, the seeds will hang on the bird's buttocks, and when they encounter a big tree, they will stick to the branches and rely on this tree. If you think about it carefully, the stickiness is simply the wisdom of the plant to prevent bird droppings from falling on the ground and not finding a host.

Looks sticky.

Image source: Wikipedia

By the way, if you see mistletoe berries that have not been eaten by birds, don’t compete with them for food. It’s not that you are not allowed to eat them, but the berries are poisonous and will give you a stomachache if you eat them.

Your assistant is online

Now that I have learned some knowledge, I should also teach you the secret to being single, right? The secret is that in Christmas customs, young girls cannot refuse a kiss under the mistletoe.

Romantic mistletoe

Image source: plants.ces.ncsu.edu

In a book called "British Travelogue" which records British social life, it is recorded as follows:

The mistletoe is still hung up in farm-houses and kitchens at Christmas, and the young men have the privilege of kissing the girls under it, plucking each time a berry from the bush. When the berries are all plucked the privilege ceases.

Mistletoe often appears in various movies and TV series, but it is not always sweet and can be a bit awkward. In Harry Potter and the Harry Potter film, Dobby the elf decorated the Room of Requirement. After the training, Harry and Cho, who were left alone, kissed naturally under the mistletoe, looking young and ignorant.

It is not difficult to infer from the region that the hanging thing is the white mistletoe

But not everyone is willing to accept a kiss under the mistletoe. In "Friends", Rachel cleverly "refers to mistletoe as basil" and avoids the kiss from the apartment manager.

Refers to mistletoe as basil

All I can say is that girls who don't want to be kissed on Christmas can avoid the mistletoe with a fancy move, or be as smart as Rachel.

Mistletoe's super buff

The legend of mistletoe originated from Norse mythology. Balder, the god of light, had a nightmare about "death", which was regarded as an ominous sign by his mother, Frigg, the queen of gods. So she searched all things in the world and asked them to swear to her that they would not harm her son. Even Thor's hammer could not hurt him, but they ignored the seemingly weak mistletoe.

Later, the jealous Loki stabbed Balder to death with mistletoe. All creatures had to cry for Balder to save him, but one female giant refused to cry for her, so Balder died.

Baldur was stabbed to death by mistletoe

Image source: anbg.gov.au

But there is a saying that Balder did not die, but was resurrected by Frigga, who then declared mistletoe a symbol of love and promised to kiss anyone who passed under it. Thus, the custom of kissing under the mistletoe was passed down.

But what does Frigga's willingness to kiss everyone have to do with other girls passing under the mistletoe? I can only say that this is a myth, and there is no truth in myths.

Not only can you not refuse a kiss, mistletoe also gives you a buff. Legend has it that couples kissing under the mistletoe can live happily ever after.

Ginny: Oh

Mistletoe is evergreen all year round and has a very positive image in culture. It is often associated with romance, hope, and fertility, and is therefore loved by many people, even excessively.

Africans carried mistletoe into battle to avoid injury; Austrians placed it on their doorsteps to avoid nightmares; residents on the border between Italy and Austria believed it could help people become invisible; Swedes even believed that mistletoe branches could indicate where to find gold veins... Just listen to it, don't get too involved.

What other Christmas plants are there?

After talking about mistletoe, I will also talk about the remaining Christmas plants. The most common ones are Christmas trees, Christmas wreaths, and the Chinese original peace fruit.

The most traditional Christmas tree is the fir tree mentioned in Andersen's story, which is the European silver fir. Of course, evergreen, triangular-shaped conifers can also be used as alternatives for Christmas trees. It is illegal to cut down trees in China, so the plastic Christmas trees in supermarkets are also good.

Once the Christmas tree is in place, can Christmas be far behind?

Image source: marthastewart.com

The fixed combination of Christmas wreaths is "holly and ivy". The ivy is not the ivy of the Araliaceae family, but the ginkgo mistletoe with white berries. The European holly has red berries and prickly leaves.

Does the European holly look familiar? There is a plant very similar to it in China, but it is more thorny and is called holly. It also produces bright red fruits.

Holly

Image source: Tuchong Creative

As for how to make a Christmas wreath, I will teach you tomorrow.

Although Mistletoe has the buff of not being able to refuse a kiss, I want to remind everyone:

Being in love is romantic, anything else is just hooliganism, everyone should know when to stop. I wish everyone can spend Christmas Eve with their loved one.

Written by | Lin Sui

WeChat Editor | Ah She Shuang

Source: Museum