Mistletoe has long been seen as one of two things - something to stand under at Christmas-time for a kiss, or a parasitic plant that grows on other trees.
Balch's Island is a garden bed just east of the "Cherry Walk", which is named after Robert Balch, a deputy director of the Dunedin Botanic Garden between 1946 and 1969.
Umbellularia californica is the sole species in its genus, belonging to the laurel family Lauraceae and found naturally from Oregon to northern Baja California.