'Shrooms from Santa Claus on the Winter Solstice

Santa's distinctive style has drawn comparisons to 17th-century Siberian shamans.
(Illustration: Yumiyumi/Shutterstock)

Have you ever wondered where the Story of Santa Claus came from?  Me too. Then, looking at Mother Nature Network News the other day, a story by Russell McLendon caught my eye, "7 mind-bending facts about Magic Mushrooms."

Apparently, there are magic "muscimol" mushrooms found all over the world. There are also religious shamans all over the world. In Siberia, the variety of mushrooms ingested by shamans is Amanita muscaria.  And these 'shrooms help the shamans commune with the spirit world.  

What's this got to do with Santa?  Well, each year on the Winter Solstice (December 21st), beginning as far back as the 1600s, the Shamans of Siberia began an annual custom.  They would gather magic mushrooms, dry them, and go out into the neighborhood to give them to the villagers as gifts. The Shamans' custom was to dress up in costumes that resembled the mushrooms... red with white trim. They would take their reindeers with them and climb up onto the rooftops to enter the houses though specially-made openings, since the front doors were snowed in all winter long, and so unusable. 

The Shamans' reindeers also ingested the mushrooms frequently, by simply foraging in the woods where they are plentiful. In an altered state, Shamans enjoyed being able to communicate with the reindeers' spirits. 

Considering the hallucinogenic properties of Amanita muscaria, is it any wonder folks started seeing reindeers flying from the rooftops with a plump man in a red suit carrying gifts on wintery Christmas nights?

So, the next time you look up in the sky on a winter's night and recall the Santa Claus story, you are going to remember the Siberian shamans' magic mushrooms and think: makes as much sense as anything else!

Enjoy your Winter Solstice today, shortest day of this year. 

And to read McLendon's wonderful complete story, visit: https://www.mnn.com/health/fitness-well-being/blogs/facts-about-magic-mushrooms. 

Toyon, Hollywood's Native Christmas Berry Bush

Toyon Bush, Heteromeles arbutifolia,
Santa Monica Mtns, Photo by Kathy Vilim

Ever wonder how Hollywood got its name?  

The Toyon bush, Heteromeles arbutifolia, is a drought tolerant perennial shrub native to chaparral regions of California (such as the Santa Monica Mountains). Toyon has long been beloved by Californians, especially during the month of December when it produces glossy red berries in profuse clusters.  

The shrub resembles another winter evergreen found back East, European Holly, Ilex aquifolium, which is frequently used in Yuletide decorations for its red berries.

It has been said that the Hollywood Hills were once covered in Toyon bushes. Even before Hollywood’s development back in the 1920's, women would collect Toyon holly branches and pick the berries to decorate for Christmas. 

After so much berry picking, the State of California passed a law against “collecting plants on public land or land not owned by the person picking the plant without the landowner’s written permission” lest the plants get picked out.

Some say this is how Hollywood got its name.  Others say this is not true, that the story is just a romantic notion, and that the name Hollywood was simply chosen by a woman friend of the developers who named it after an Ohio town. Originally, the development was called Hollywood Land.

Romantic notion or not, the Hollywood hills could still be covered in Toyon bushes with their red berries in winter, and their red berries can still be used in decorating, especially pretty contrasting with green pine needles in wreaths.  

The name "Toyon" is in fact the Native American name for the bush, given by the Ohlone people, and is still the name used today. The native people, including the Chumash and Tongva, used the wild, edible berries (tomes) for food, despite their containing glycosides, which would be largely removed by cooking. The berries would be made into jelly, or they would be dried and stored for later use in porridge or pancakes. Toyon leaves were used as a tea for upset stomachs. 

On April 17, 2012 Los Angeles chose the Toyon bush as the City’s official native plant. The Toyon earned this distinctive status by having such a long and colorful history in Hollywood going back to the City’s founding. 

Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia) is a native plant that is drought tolerant once established. It will accept some garden water if drainage is good, tolerates adobe soil, but also lives in beach sand. Toyon likes full sun, but tolerates full shade and is fire-resistant if irrigated in summer. It grows easily to 8ft, but can be pruned as desired or to 15ft when left in the wild.

These native plants have wildlife value: The fruit provides food for our local birds, including mockingbirds, robins, and cedar waxwings.  Bears and coyotes eat the berries and spread them, and in the spring Toyon’s white flowers are beloved by bees and butterflies.

So, if you are looking to add new native bushes to your yard, Toyon is a wonderful choice for humans and wildlife alike. And a great Holiday Gift to the birds!