Noxious Weed Found For First Time In California County

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Japanese dodder, an exotic parasitic weed which is a high priority noxious weed in California, was recently detected in a natural wooded area along the state’s central coast, in Lompoc. It is the first time it is reported in Santa Barbara County and the Agriculture Commissioner’s office is taking immediate action.

Surendra Dara, a University of California Cooperative Extension farm advisor, provided the following information about the noxious weed. For more details, check his blog. Japanese dodder, Cuscuta japonica, is a parasitic plant that belongs to Convolvulaceae family. It is a parasitic annual plant that has a slender, yellow stem with red spots and striations, and scale-like leaves. It produces haustoria (singular hostorium), which are root-like structures that penetrate the vascular tissue of the host and absorb nutrients and water.

It can reproduce by seed and by vegetative means through fragments of the plant. Seed can germinate in soil, but the plant has to come in contact with a host for the young shoot to survive beyond a few days. It appears that Japanese dodder seed produced in California is not viable and vegetative reproduction is the main source of propagation.

Japanese dodder has a wide host range that includes many fruits and vegetables, from herbaceous annuals to woody shrubs and trees. Crops like corn, cucumber, eggplant, pea, pumpkins, soybean, and tomato, and ornamental shrubs, fruit and other trees are among the hosts that are parasitized by this weed. It is spread by equipment, birds, animals, and people as seed and fragments of plant material. Gardening activities and improper composting and infested plant material can spread the weed. Intentional planting for medicinal purposes is thought to be a significant factor for the dissemination of this weed.

Depending on the extent of infestation, damage can range from stunted growth to death. Japanese dodder growers faster and spreads to larger areas than the other dodders. Prevention of the infestation is the best way to manage Japanese dodder. Due to its current status as a high priority regulated pest, one should not attempt to control or remove Japanese dodder if detected. It should be immediately reported to the local Ag Commissioner’s office.