BRITISH WILD FLOWERS. 
185 
this account also the Ivy was formerly used to hang at the door of inns, to show that wine was sold there ; and 
this custom, which is still in use in the south of France, is alluded to in the following curious old lines : — 
“ Nay, Ivy, nay, it shall not be I wys; 
Let Holly have the mastery, as the manner is. 
Holly stands in the hall, fair to behold ; 
Ivy stands without the door ; she is full sore a-cold.” 
In the latter part of the same song, the writer, however, seems to assert that birds are not fond of Ivy- 
berries, and that they prefer those of the Holly. This, however, is so far from being the case, that all kinds of 
birds are remarkably fond of Ivy-berries, particularly the thrush and the blackbird. It is true that these birds 
reject the seeds, and these are found in great quantities near their nests. The seeds of the Ivy, when deprived 
of the pulpy matter which surrounds them, bear considerable resemblance to grains of wheat; and hence the 
numbers that are sometimes found lying about are supposed to have given rise to the stories of wheat being 
rained from the clouds, which were once so popular. The Ivy, when young, has a three-lobed leaf; but when it 
takes a tree-like character, and forms flowers and seeds, the leaves become ovate. The flowers appear from 
October till November; and the berries, which hang on all the winter, are smooth and black. The Ivy is the 
badge of the Highland clan Gordon. 
CHAPTER XLII. 
THE LORANTHUS FAMILY. (Loranthe^e, Rich, and Juss.) 
Character of the Order. —Calyx superior, with two bracteae at 
the base. Corolla with four or eight petals, more or less united at the 
base. Stamens equal in number to the petals, and opposite to them. 
Ovarium one-celled; ovulum pendulous ; style one or none ; stigma 
simple. Fruit succulent, one-celled. Seed solitary, pendulous ; testa 
membranous; embryo cylindrical, longer than the fleshy albumen ; 
radicle naked, clavate, superior.—Parasitical herbaceous plants. Leaves 
opposite, veinless, fleshy, without stipules. Flowers often monoecious, 
axillary or terminal, solitary, corymbose, or spiked. ( Lindley .) 
Description, &c. —The only British plant belonging to this order is the common Misseltoe; the Loranthus , 
from which it takes its name, being only found on the Continent. 
GENUS I. 
THE MISSELTOE. (Viscum, Lin.) 
Lin. Syst. DICECIA TETRANDRIA. 
Generic Character. —Dioecious. Calyx an entire margin. Corolla | the petals. Female. Style very small. Stigma capitate. Berry 
deeply four-cleft, fleshy. Male. Anthers sessile, in the middle of | one-seeded, crowned with the calyx. (Lindley.) 
Description, &c. —There is only one species of this genus a native of Britain, though seventy-six species 
are said to exist. The name of Viscum , which signifies bird-lime, alludes to the slimy juice of the fruit, which 
is occasionally made into bird-lime, and which was anciently preferred to that made from the Holly. The word 
Misseltoe is derived from mistelta , the Saxon name for the plant, which also alludes to a slimy substance. The 
genus is placed in the Linntean class Dioecia, on account of the male and female flowers being separate ; and in 
the order Tetrandria, from its four stamens. 
B B 
