Dodder (Cuscuta campestris): The 'Love Vine' Parasite on Lilacs

Dodder (Cuscuta campestris): The 'Love Vine' Parasite on Lilacs

A gardener described long vines emerging horizontally from lilac stems, with leaves similar to lilac but less smooth, twining at the ends, curling around trunks and dying back in winter. Stems were green with white dots. No flowers observed yet.

Expert Identification

The vine is dodder (Cuscuta campestris). Dodder starts green, turns orange as it feeds, and the white dots are flowers that later form seeds. Seeds can remain dormant for 50 years, so removal before seed maturity is crucial. It's also called "love vine" from a folk tradition where girls threw it over their shoulder to divine true love.

Dodder