Viscaceae

Tiny (up to 3 cm tall), evergreen, parasitic shrubs or non-woody (herbaceous) perennials mainly on the branches of Black Spruce, but occasionally on other conifers. Plants are anchored by a root-like structure that penetrates the tree’s branches to absorb water and nutrients, stunting its growth or sometimes killing the tree; affected tree branches often produce witches brooms, dense upward pointing clusters of narrow branches reminiscent of an old-style round broom, or have smaller shorter needles.

Stems of the parasite with joints at the nodes, simple or with a few short branches. Leaves scale-like, nearly round in outline, tiny, only about 1 mm in diameter, opposite, fused to one another at base; each pair arranged perpendicular to the pair below; leaf edges with no teeth.

Flowers solitary or few in small spike-like cymes in leaf-axils, resembling short side branches until fully developed. Male and female flowers on separate plants. Pollen bearing flowers usually each with 3-4 petals; every one of these with a single unstalked stamen attached to the middle of it. Seed-producing flowers mostly each with only 3 petals around a single pistil created by fusion of 3 or 4 carpels; ovary located below the point of attachment of the petals (inferior); style 1. Sepals none. Fruit a shiny berry located on a short stalk that is curved outward; when ripe the berry fills with fluid and explosively propels the single sticky seed out for distances of 6 m or more.