Bitterroot Restoration

Order: Solanales
Family: Convolvulaceae
Common name: Swarnalata, Algusilata(Beng.); Dodder(Eng.).
Life cycle: Perennial
Native Range:

Cuscuta reflexa (dodder) is an unusual parasitic vine related to the Morning glory family. The plant is leafless and rootless. It flowers range in color from white to pink to yellow to cream. Some flower in the early summer, others later, depending on the species. The seeds are minute and produced in large quantities. They have a hard coating, and can survive in the soil for 5–10 years or more. Cuscuta reflexa seeds sprout at or near the surface of the soil. While it germination can occur without a host, it has to reach a green plant quickly; dodder grows toward the smell of nearby plants.

The plant is employed in Ayurvedic medicine to treat difficulty in urinating, jaundice, muscle pain and coughs. The juice of the plant, mixed with the juice of Saccharum officinarum, is used in the treatment of jaundice.