Editing Cuscuta (section)

==Parasitism==
After a dodder attaches itself to a plant, it wraps itself around it. If the host contains food beneficial to dodder, the dodder produces [[Haustorium|haustoria]] that insert themselves into the vascular system of the host. The vestigial root of the dodder in the soil then dies. The dodder can grow and attach itself to multiple plants. In tropical areas, it can grow more or less continuously and may reach high into the canopy of shrubs and trees; in cold temperate regions, it is an [[annual plant]] and is restricted to relatively low vegetation that can be reached by new seedlings each spring.

Dodder is parasitic on a very wide variety of plants, including a number of agricultural and horticultural crop species, such as [[alfalfa]], [[lespedeza]], [[flax]], [[clover]], [[potato]]es, [[chrysanthemum]], [[dahlia]], [[helenium]], [[trumpet vine]], [[ivy]] and [[petunia]]s. It is an [[ectoparasite]] and is categorized as [[Obligate parasite|holoparasitic]] plant, or a plant that is non-photosynthetic and is completely dependent on a host.

Dodder ranges in severity based on its species and the species of the host, the time of attack, and whether any viruses are also present in the host plant. By debilitating the host plant, dodder decreases the ability of plants to resist viral diseases, and dodder can also spread plant diseases from one host to another if it is attached to more than one plant. This is of economic concern in agricultural systems, where an annual drop of 10% yield can be devastating. There has been an emphasis on dodder vine control in order to manage plant diseases in the field.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

[[File:Cuscuta on Ziziphus mauritiana Tree in Punjab, India.jpg|thumb|Cuscuta on a [[Ziziphus mauritiana|Chinese date]] tree in [[Punjab, India]]]]
[[File:Dodder and its use of haustoria.svg|thumb|Diagram illustrating how ''Cuscuta'' uses haustoria to penetrate the vascular system of its host plant and remove sugars and nutrients from the host's [[phloem]]. [Note: twining direction is reversed from that shown in this illustration.]<br /> 1). ''Cuscuta'' plant <br /> 2). Host plant <br /> 3). ''Cuscuta'' leaves <br /> 4). Ground tissue <br /> 5). Phloem <br /> 6). Sugars and nutrients <br /> 7). Epidermal tissue <br /> 8). A ''Cuscuta'' haustorium growing into the phloem of the host plant.]]