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Cuscuta spp. (dodder )
Cuscuta spp.
dodder
There are around 200 speices of Cuscuta. Of primary concern in alfalfa, lucerne are Cuscuta campestris and Cuscuta epithymum/trifolia, Cuscuta indecorum, Cuscuta planifolia.
Worldwide.
Widespread, essentially every state has reported dodders. Every state in the US lists Cuscuta as noxious and prohibited from movement.
2025-08-06
parasitic plant
Mexico
Wide host range
CUSTA
Cuscuta spp. includes Cuscuta campestris, Cuscuta epithymum/trifolia, Cuscuta indecora, Cuscuta planifolia. Species tend to be host-specific. Considered a noxious weed seed in many countries and US states (CUSCUTA-1)
1 Known Hosts
Medicago sativa
alfalfa
No
CUSCUTA-1, CABI CPC, CUSCUTA-2, CUSCUTA-3, CUSCUTA-4
Cuscuta seed can be a common contaminant in seed crops. It is not seed-transmitted and is not parasitic on seeds.
Yes
Physical purity by trained seed technologist
Certification of seed by AOSA or SCST or ISTA lab critical to prevention of movement and spread.
Physical purity
Biological, chemical, cultural
Use clean seed. Rotation with non-susceptible crops. Some chemical applications have shown to be effective. Weeding is effective for smaller crops. Biological control methods, such as host-specific fungi, allelopathic plants, and parasitic insects, are under research but not widely adopted.
CABI CPC, CUSCUTA-4
2025-08-06 08:55:47
CUSCUTA-1
The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov). 2017. USDA, NRCS National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC USA.
CABI CPC
Crop Protection Compendium. Wallingford, UK: CAB International. www.cabi.org/cpc.
CUSCUTA-2
Balios, V. A., Fischer, K., Bawin, T., & Krause, K. (2025). One organ to infect them all: the Cuscuta haustorium. Annals of Botany, 135(5), 823-840.
CUSCUTA-3
Meighani, F., Mamnoei, E., Hatami, S., Samadi-Kalkhoran, E., Khalil-Tahmasebi, B., Korres, N. E., & Bajwa, A. A. (2024). Chemical control of the field dodder (Cuscuta campestris) in new-seeded alfalfa (Medicago sativa). Agronomy, 14(8), 1643.
CUSCUTA-4
Zagorchev, L., Zagorcheva, T., Teofanova, D., & Odjakova, M. (2025). Methods of Control of Parasitic Weeds of the Genus Cuscuta—Current Status and Future Perspectives. Plants, 14(15), 2321.
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