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Cuscuta reflexa

Common name:	Dodder	Family:	Convolvulaceae
Author:	Roxb.	Botanical references:	1, 266
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - Himalayas from Afghanistan to China.
Habitat:	Parasitic on Desmodium spp, Rubus spp and Viburnum spp at 1700 - 2900 metres in Kashmir[145]. It is also found on Zizyphus jujube and Vitex negundo and has been known to kill these plants[146].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	0	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	reflexa = reflexed
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Solanales. Morning-glory family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	India
Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds	From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia , DEFRA Injurious Weeds
	Listed as noxious/invasive for: Victoria, New South Wales, Western Australia, Tasmaina.

Physical Characteristics

Perennial. . The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). We rate it 0/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Dappled Shade.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Alterative Anthelmintic Carminative Purgative.

The seeds are alterative, anthelmintic and carminative[240, 243]. They are used in the treatment of bilious disorders[240].
The stems are used in the treatment of bilious disorders[243].
The whole plant is purgative[240, 243]. It is used internally in treating protracted fevers and externally in the treatment of body pains and itchy skin[240, 243, 272]. The plant is employed in Ayurvedic medicine to treat difficulty in urinating, jaundice, muscle pain and coughs[254]. The juice of the plant, mixed with the juice of Saccharum officinarum, is used in the treatment of jaundice[272].
The analysis of the plant differs according to the host it is growing on[240]. The report does not say if this makes a difference to its medicinal properties[K].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

We have virtually no information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain. One report says that it needs cold greenhouse treatment in this country[1] but some provenances from the higher parts of its range could succeed outdoors.
This is a parasitic species that is devoid of leaves, roots or chlorophyll and so is totally dependant upon its host[238]. It must be grown next to the host plant, which it penetrates with suckers in order to obtain nutriment[238].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn, by lodging it among the stems of a host plant that is being grown in a pot in the greenhouse[238].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[PHARM] Phytochemical Data (common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Convolvulaceae.

[CHINA] Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[145] Singh. Dr. G. and Kachroo. Prof. Dr. P. Forest Flora of Srinagar. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh 1976
A good flora of the western Himalayas but poorly illustrated. Some information on plant uses.

[146] Gamble. J. S. A Manual of Indian Timbers. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh 1972
Written last century, but still a classic, giving a lot of information on the uses and habitats of Indian trees. Not for the casual reader.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.

[243] Medicinal Plants of Nepal Dept. of Medicinal Plants. Nepal. 1993
Terse details of the medicinal properties of Nepalese plants, including cultivated species and a few imported herbs.

[254] Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley. London 1996 ISBN 9-780751-303148
An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.

[266] Flora of China 1994
On-line version of the Flora - an excellent resource giving basic info on habitat and some uses.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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