Phoradendron juniperinum

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Phoradendron juniperinum, commonly known as juniper mistletoe, is a flowering plant in the sandalwood family (Santalaceae). It is a hemiparasite that lives on juniper trees in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, obtaining water and minerals from its host while also photosynthesizing.

Description:
- It’s a shrub with many erect and spreading yellow-green branches, 20–40 cm long, growing from a woody base on the host.
- Leaves are flattened and scale-like.
- The plant is dioecious, meaning male and female plants are separate.
- Female plants produce shiny pink berries about 4 mm wide.
- Birds spread the seeds to new host branches, where they germinate.

Habitat and range:
- It parasitizes junipers such as Utah juniper (Juniperus osteosperma), Rocky Mountain juniper (J. scopulorum), and western juniper (J. occidentalis).
- Found on junipers in California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Texas, and in Chihuahua and Sonora, Mexico.

Ecology:
- The mistletoe taps into the host’s xylem for water and nutrients and can photosynthesize some energy on its own.

Uses:
- Various Native American tribes used juniper mistletoe for medicine, teas, and sometimes as food.
- The Zuni used an infusion of the whole plant for stomachaches; other preparations were used to promote muscle relaxation at birth and to stop bleeding after childbirth.

Taxonomy:
- Binomial name: Phoradendron juniperinum
- Synonym: Phoradendron ligatum
- Family: Santalaceae
- Authority: Engelm. ex A.Gray