CARTER: ILLINOIS TREES: THEIR DISEASES 3 



toes, Phoradendron flavescens (Fig. 4 and 5). Mistletoes, which 

 are seed plants with green leaves, grow on trees and obtain 

 nourishment from the sap by sending rootlike structures (haus- 

 toria) through the bark. 



In southern Illinois, mistletoe frequently is found growing 

 on elm and occasionally on oak, sycamore, black gum, honey 

 locust, maple, and walnut. It occurs in 18 counties in southern 

 Illinois; its range extends northward along the Wabash River 

 into Clark County and northward along the Mississippi River 

 into Randolph County. Mistletoe causes very little noticeable 

 damage to trees in Illinois. Scattered clumps or bunches of 

 mistletoe, conspicuous during the dormant season when trees 



Fig. 4. — Mistletoe is a green, seed-producing plant that grows on living 

 trees. It causes little noticeable damage to trees in Illinois. The two clumps 

 of mistletoe shown above are on American elm. 



Fig. o. — ^Mistletoe attaches itself to a living tree. It obtains nourish- 

 ment from the sap of the tree by sending rootlike structures (haustoria) 

 through the bark. 



