Holly, yew and mistletoe, the most cheerful and celebrated of seasonal plants, are also the most poisonous. These three toxic beauties can cause health disruptions from indigestion to nervous collapse and death.
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In the Northern Hemisphere the Winter Solstice falls on December 21, the longest night of the year, and heralds the return of light after a long cold winter. Solstice is a time of revelry, feasting, celebrations including Yule and Saturnalia, and gifts of light, such as candles.
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Ancient rituals of the solstice also include music and dancing, masks and elaborate costumes often representing nature deities, and bonfires. Bonfires represent the sun warming the earth, and the light caused the sinister demons of darkness to retreat.
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Bright colors abound. Red and green are popular colors of the season and both stimulate the warrior spirit. Green corresponds to feminine, nature, wood, nurturing, growth, expansion and creativity. Red is masculine, fire, relating to passion, positive action, protection. White, the color of mistletoe berries, relates to light, virility and vitality.
These three seasonal plants are part of the traditions of Saturnalia, Yule and Christmas. Symbols of life and rebirth, they all are toxic, causing symptoms from nausea to death.
1. Holly - Fertility, Magic, Eternal Life
Green and red are colors of the Yule season because of pert Holly, used abundantly in the earlier Roman celebration Saturnalia (Dec 17 - 23). European holly (Ilex aquifolium) is the plant most commonly used for decorations and wreaths.
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The wreath attunes the energy of the circle. In spiritual meaning circles relate to wholeness or completion, infinity, symmetry, perfection, feminine virtues and inner strength. The circle is a vessel for magic energies. Magic spells are often cast in a circle. Circle relates to celestial bodies the Sun and full Moon.
Early solstice celebrations marked the end of long cold winter nights, and the new feeling of hope and optimism as days lengthen, sap flows and trees bud and both plants and animals have thoughts of love.
With its cheerful bright red berries and shiny green leaves, evergreen Holly doesn't wither in winter like other plants. There are some deciduous species but the traditional Yule Holly retains its leaves and is a vibrant symbol of strength and perseverance. Along with Rowan and Elder, Holly is a favored wood for making runes.
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Holly berries are toxic to humans and other animals. Some birds, like the Cardinal and Robin, find them tasty and satisfying. Despite their small size, birds have a higher threshold of toxin resistance than humans.
The poison is created by the toxin saponin, which infuses the berries but ignores the leaves. Consuming holly berries can cause:
vomiting
diarrhea
dehydration
drowsiness
Eating over 20 berries can be fatal to a child. Even a small amount causes illness. The red berries look tempting. Keep them out of reach of children and curious dogs. Much like mushrooms, some species of holly leaves are safe to eat. Some can cause mild to serious illness.
2. Yew - Life, Death, Rebirth
Themes of life, death and rebirth rule the seasons. The land goes into a death state over winter. It's also the time restless Undead and evil spirits roam.
The Yew (Taxus baccata) is a significant symbol of the Solstice, return of life to the Earth and wellsprings of hope and optimism. Green needles and red berries make this plant another holiday favorite. An evergreen, the yew tree can live for centuries, making it a tree of longevity and life everlasting.
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Yew is toxic throughout, except the red flesh or berry parts surrounding the seed. Berries are eaten by birds and the seeds inside then pass into the droppings of the bird to propagate the tree species. Yew is one of the most common forms of plant poisoning.
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Yew is known as the privy tree. It was planted near outdoor toilets or outhouses because the scent of the plant keeps insects away. Yew is highly toxic to people, cats, dogs, horses, livestock and wild animals. According the Julius Caesar, during the Gallic Wars (58 - 50 BC), Cativolcus, chief of the Eburones, poisoned himself with yew rather than submit to Rome. Similarly, yew was used in mass suicides by besieged or defeated people.
Yew wood was considered ideal for longbows because of its hardness and flexibility. Yew is the hardest of the softwoods. Yew wood was preferred for making lutes and other musical instruments because of its resonant qualities.
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A resilient tree, yew grows even in poor soil. It can handle massive pruning. Nonetheless it's a slow-growing plant and because of the popularity of yew wood, was harvested almost to extinction. In the mid 20th century yew was found to have cancer-fighting compounds.
Yew berries, needles and bark contain taxine alkaloids which cause the toxic effects. Symptoms of yew poisoning include:
trembling and nervous tremors
dyspnoea (subjective awareness of difficulty breathing)
cyanosis (blue color in skin, lips, nail beds caused by oxygen deficiency in the blood)
nausea
vomiting
diarrhea
neurological disturbance, loss of muscle control
cardiovascular collapse
death
The lethal dose for an adult is about 50g (1.7 oz) of yew needles. Once the toxin is ingested, resuscitation is virtually impossible.
3. Mistletoe - Romance, Fertility, Vitality
Mistletoe (Viscum album) is a parasitic plant with a long history of use in medicine and magic. The early Druids were fond of herbal properties of mistletoe, and the mystic plant with white berries and green foliage became a symbol of love for the Solstice season.
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An evergreen, mistletoe grows on trees such as oak and aspen. It can be seen in winter, fresh and green among the bare branches. Mistletoe inserts roots into the host tree and feeds from the nutrients. In the Asterix and Obelix series, the village Druid is often found up in oak trees gathering mistletoe.
Mistletoe is strongly associated with male fertility as the white seeds represent semen. In Celtic myth mistletoe relates to Taranis, God of Thunder. For the Romans, mistletoe represented peace, love and compassion. They hung it over doorways to protect the household. The ancient Greeks called the plant oak sperm.
Kissing under the mistletoe came into practice in the later 18th century, popular among servants. In Norse mythology the tradition goes back to Frigg who decreed mistletoe deliver a 'kiss' and nevermore be used in weaponry.
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In Victorian England, a man was allowed to kiss any woman who stood beneath a mistletoe, and bad luck would befall her if she refused. This was significant as public displays of romance were taboo in Victorian society.
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An extension of the tradition was to eat a berry with every kiss, and the kissing stopped when the berries were gone. In some cases this brought on mistletoe poisoning.
Among the 1500 species of mistletoe, all are toxic to some degree. European mistletoe, active substance tyramine, is considered more toxic than American mistletoe (Phoradendron serotinum), active substance phoratoxin.
Toxins are active in leaves and berries of the plant. Adults experience less intense effects but the toxins can be fatal to children or animals. Symptoms of mistletoe poisoning include:
blurred vision
diarrhea
nausea
vomiting
Severe toxic effects include:
delirium
hallucinations
seizures
hypertension
cardiac arrest
There's no actual cure for mistletoe poisoning. Symptoms are treated in hospital.
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On the other end of the health spectrum, mistletoe has medicinal properties. In folk and modern medicine its compounds are used to treat arthritis, headache, high blood pressure, symptoms of menopause, epilepsy and infertility.