Skip to main content

Rope dodder

Also known as: cluster dodder

Cuscuta glomerata Choisy

Images

Click on image to view full size

Rope dodder
Rope dodder stems
Rope dodder
Rope dodder
Rope dodder flowering
Rope dodder stems
Rope dodder
Rope dodder
Rope dodder in fruit
Rope dodder

Morphology

Stem
Slender vine, twining, 1/25 to 1/16 inch in diameter, glabrous, greenish-yellow, yellow or orange; often withered or absent by flowering.
Leaves
Alternate, reduced to scales; appears leafless.
Inflorescence
Clusters, dense, rope-like, winding around stem of host plant.
Flower
Flowers sessile, in 2 densely clustered parallel rows on opposite sides of stems, subtended by bracts; bracts numerous, overlapping, lanceolate; tips pointed, curved downward; calyx deeply divided; sepals 5, oblong-oval; tips blunt to pointed, spreading; corolla cylindrical, 1/6 to 1/5 inch long, 5-lobed, white or yellowish, fragrant; lobes pointed, spreading or curved backward; stamens shorter than corolla lobes.
Fruit
Capsule, spherical with pointed tip or thickened collar, thus appearing flask-shaped; seeds 0-2, oval, about 1/15 inch long, brown.

Ecology

Habitat
Prairies, roadsides, stream banks, low areas, damp sites.
Distribution
Throughout Kansas
Reproduction
Seeds

Additional Notes

Comments

Dodder is parasitic on the above ground portion of other plants. Rope dodder is often found growing on Asteraceae such as Helianthus and Solidago.

Quick Facts
Plant Type
Wildflower
Family
Convolvulaceae - Morning Glory Family
Life Span
Annual
Height
Twining or climbing on other plants
Origin
Native
Last Updated
2024-10-22
Color Groups
White, Green & Greenish White Wildflowers
Flowering Period
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Blooms: July, August, September