Dodder

(Cuscuta spp.)

Cuscutaceae (Dodder Family)

▲▼ dodder on sericea lespedeza plants

▲ close-up of stems

Dodder:  (pp. 282-283 in Weeds of the Great Plains; pp. 212-213, Weeds of the Northeast)

·       annual, parasitic plant with twining, yellow-orange stems that attach to host plants to obtain water and nutrients—looks like yellow-orange spaghetti growing over plants

·       tiny flower clusters appear along twining stems, and produce abundant, dust-like seeds

·       tiny seeds germinate, but once stems make contact with a host, the roots die off and the host becomes the main food/water source for the dodder

·       commonly found on alfalfa, clovers, sericea lespedeza, vegetable gardens, other herbaceous crops

·       a  number of different species exist, but all have similar appearance