Trees, animals and fungi have complex relationships - much like us humans. 

 

Our woodlands are bursting with connections that are hidden to the naked eye, from underground webs of fungi to plants that depend on eachother. 

 

Mistletoe

In ancient folk lore, druids would embrace beneath the boughs of a mistletoe. This tradition has survived, making mistletoe a Christmas tradition. 

 

Despite it's romantic reputation, mistletoe is actually a parasite plant; so it grows and survives on host trees. 

 

This reliance can cause stunted grown in some host trees, because the mistletoe deprives them of nutrients. The older the mistletoe gets, the more nutrients it greedily steals from its host. 

 

A Kew Diploma student first introduced mistletoe to the Gardens by rubbing locally-collected seeds into the bark of nine suitable host trees. So, Kew's mistletoe owes its very existence to its generous hosts