Mistletoe: Where to Buy Online and In Store, Fresh or Artificial
Buying mistletoe comes down to one decision most shoppers skip: real or faux. Fresh cut sprigs are a November and December product, they dry out, they drop berries, and the plant is toxic to people, cats, and dogs. Artificial mistletoe ships year round, lasts for years, and carries no poisoning risk. Here is where to buy both, what a fair price looks like, and the safety facts to settle first.
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Mistletoe Explained: What It Is and Who Buys It
Mistletoe is a parasitic plant that grows on the branches of living trees and is cut and sold as a Christmas decoration. It is harvested from a tree canopy rather than farmed, which is why supply is limited and the season is short.
Nearly everything sold in American stores is Phoradendron leucarpum, or American mistletoe. It is an evergreen shrub with smooth oval leaves and clusters of white berries, favoring hardwood hosts such as oak and elm. European mistletoe (Viscum album) sits in the same order, Santalales, but is rarely sold here as decor. Both are hemiparasites: green leaves run photosynthesis using chlorophyll, while a root-like haustorium pulls water and mineral nutrients from the host tree. Birds spread the mistletoe seed by wiping the fruit onto a new branch.
Worth clearing up early: dwarf mistletoe, the genus that infests conifers, is a forestry pest and is never the plant a florist sells you.
The kissing tradition is why anyone buys it. That custom is documented in England from the 1700s, and classical writers described Celtic druids treating the plant as sacred long before. Norse mythology connects it to Frigg, the goddess of love. Buyers are party hosts, couples, and families, and demand lands in the last six weeks of the year.
How to Choose Mistletoe: Features That Matter
The real versus faux call decides everything else. After that, four things matter: berries, leaf condition, size, and packing.
Real or artificial. Cut sprigs give you actual leaves and real color, and nothing plastic matches that. Faux mistletoe wins on everything else: no toxicity, no shedding, no reordering, no season. A household with a crawling toddler or a curious cat has no real decision here.
The berries are often already fake. Almost no guide mentions this. Real berries fall off cut greenery and are the most toxic part, so much of the “fresh” retail product has had them stripped and replaced with wired-on white faux berries. If you want real fruit on the stem, confirm it before paying.
Leaf and stem condition. Look for deep green leaves with no browning at the edges, and stems that bend instead of snapping. Brittle, woody stems mean the cutting is already drying.
Size and format. Loose sprigs, kissing balls, or stems on ribbon. A kissing ball is ready to hang but needs clearance, so measure the door header first.
Shipping for fresh orders. Greenery sealed in solid plastic arrives worse than it left. Sellers who ship fresh use breathable wrap and a fast service, and the good ones publish cutoff dates.
| Factor | Fresh cut | Artificial |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | November and December only | Year round online |
| Lifespan | Dries and sheds, replace yearly | Reuse for years |
| Toxicity | Leaves and berries are poisonous | No poisoning risk |
| Berries | Frequently swapped for faux | Always faux |
| Cost pattern | Every year | Once |
- Decide real or faux first. If small children or pets share the room, pick artificial and skip the rest.
- Check the calendar. Cut sprigs only reach stores in November and December.
- Ask about the berries. Confirm whether the white fruit is real or wired on.
- Inspect leaves and stems. Deep green, pliable, no brown edges.
- Measure the doorway before you buy.
Mistletoe Buying Mistakes to Skip
The costliest mistake is treating a poisonous plant as ordinary decor and hanging it where a child or a pet can reach a dropped berry.
Ignoring the toxicity. Both the leaves and the berries are poisonous if swallowed, by people and by animals, and the berries are the main hazard because they fall. The ASPCA, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, lists this plant as toxic to dogs and cats. Hang it high and well out of reach, sweep up anything that drops, and if you cannot guarantee that, buy artificial. If a person swallows any part of it, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222, the free 24-hour line run by the National Capital Poison Center. For a pet, call the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at 888-426-4435; a consultation fee may apply.
Mixing it up with holly. Holly has spiny, pointed leaves and red fruit; mistletoe has smooth, rounded leaves and pale clustered fruit. Mixed greenery bundles are not always labeled, and holly is toxic to pets too.
Cutting it out of a tree yourself. It grows high in the canopy on someone’s oak or elm, and hacking at a host tree to reach it damages the tree and risks a fall.
Ordering fresh from an unrated seller. Perishable greenery from an unknown marketplace seller is a gamble, and you cannot return it.
Overpaying in the last week. A plain fresh sprig generally runs about $5 to $15, kissing balls and large arrangements roughly $20 to $40. Prices climb in the December scramble.
Which Stores Carry Mistletoe
In-store shopping is a November and December activity. Outside those two months the shelves are empty and online is your only route.
Garden centers, nurseries, and florists
The most dependable places to find real mistletoe. Independent florists and garden centers buy fresh holiday greenery from growers each season, and staff can usually tell you whether the berries are real. Call before you drive over, since quantities are small.
Christmas tree lots, farmers markets, and grocery floral
Tree lots often stack wreaths, garland, and cut sprigs alongside the trees, so it is easy to grab one while buying a real Christmas tree. Farmers markets are hit or miss. Grocery floral departments stock small bundles in December.
Craft stores and big-box retailers
Hobby Lobby and Michaels stock faux stems and kissing balls with their seasonal floral supplies, and craft stores carry more realistic options than discount aisles. Walmart, the largest brick-and-mortar retailer in the United States, carries artificial mistletoe in seasonal decor, though stock varies by store and fresh product is uncommon. Browse their selection online if the shelf is bare, and check the nearby Christmas decorations displays while you are there.
Best Places to Order Mistletoe Online
Online is the only source that works in July. Faux stems and kissing balls sell all year; fresh cut sprigs from growers appear for a few weeks, then vanish until November.
Amazon
Amazon carries the deepest artificial selection and a thinner rotation of fresh sellers in season. Prime orders commonly arrive within two days. Shop their full selection, and read seller feedback on anything sold as fresh, since third-party sellers handle their own fulfillment. The same catalog covers Christmas ornaments.
Specialty growers who ship fresh
A handful of small operations harvest and ship cut sprigs during the season. Mistletoe.com and Mistletoeing.com are two long-standing examples. Check each site for current stock and shipping cutoffs rather than assuming availability; ordering typically opens in November and closes before Christmas.
Etsy
Etsy is where the handmade and vintage-style pieces live: beaded kissing balls, dried arrangements, small-batch faux stems. Sellers set their own processing and shipping times, listed on each item page.
Returns and Buyer Protection for Mistletoe
Return windows often decide between two retailers selling the same faux stem at the same price, and nobody compares them. The windows below are standard published policies and can change, so confirm on the retailer’s policy page.
| Retailer | Standard window | Practical note |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon | 30 days on most items | Third-party sellers set their own terms |
| Walmart | 90 days on most items | Order history speeds it up |
| Michaels | Varies, check the policy page | Holiday merchandise rules differ |
| Hobby Lobby | Varies, check the policy page | Keep the receipt and packaging |
| Etsy | Seller sets the policy | Handmade items are often final sale |
The category gotcha: fresh greenery is perishable, and perishables are generally excluded from return policies. If a fresh order arrives brown, your recourse is a replacement from that grower, not a store return. That is the argument for buying faux mistletoe from a retailer with a real window.
Our Top Mistletoe Picks
Grouped by the decision that matters: something safe and permanent, or something real for one season.
Best overall artificial: Kurt Adler kissing balls. A long-established Christmas decor brand. These arrive pre-assembled with a hanging loop, so nothing needs wiring. Roughly $10 to $20. Check price on Amazon
Best budget: plain faux stems and picks. Unbranded artificial mistletoe stems are the cheapest way to cover a doorway. Usually $5 to $15 per multi-pack. See options on Amazon
Best for multiple doorways: Sullivans faux bundles. Sullivans sells floral decor in multi-stem packs, which is what you want when hanging more than one. Around $12 to $20. Check price on Amazon
Best real option, in season: fresh cut sprigs. Roughly $15 to $30 for a shipped bundle. Order early in December, and confirm whether the berries are real. Check seasonal listings on Amazon
The same reuse math applies to artificial Christmas trees.
Start with the household question. If a child or a pet can reach the doorway, buy artificial mistletoe today, because it is available in July and every other month. For the real plant, set a reminder for the first week of November, then order from a grower or reserve a bundle at a local florist before the December rush clears the shelves.
Common Questions About Mistletoe
Why do we kiss under mistletoe?
The kissing custom is recorded in England during the 1700s, where it spread through servant-class Christmas celebrations before moving up the social ladder. Older symbolism feeds in: Norse mythology ties the plant to Frigg, and classical writers described druids among the Celts cutting it for ritual use. The Victorian era fixed it as standard decor.
Are mistletoe berries poisonous?
Yes. Berries and leaves are both toxic if swallowed, by people and by animals, and the berries matter most because they drop to the floor where a toddler or a dog finds them. The ASPCA lists the plant as toxic to dogs and cats. Keep it out of reach, and call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 for a person or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at 888-426-4435 for a pet.
Should the berries be white or red?
White. American mistletoe produces pale white fruit, and so does the European species. Red berries and spiny leaves mean you are holding holly. Fastest way to check an unlabeled holiday bundle.
Can you buy mistletoe in July?
Artificial, yes. Fresh, no. Faux stems and kissing balls are stocked online all year and are often cheaper in summer, because holiday decor gets discounted outside its season. Fresh cut mistletoe is harvested for the holidays only.
Do fresh sprigs need to be kept in water?
No. Cut sprigs are hung dry rather than stood in a vase, because the stems fed off a host tree instead of roots in soil. Keeping the bundle away from heat vents and direct sun slows the drying, but it dries out eventually. That is the trade in choosing real over faux.
The wheretobuyguides.com editorial team checked retailer channels and pricing for this guide in July 2026.