Japanese Dodder

About 100 twining, parasitic annuals belong to this genus, which occurs throughout temperate and warm regions. These unusual plants have no roots and no green parts, their leaves being reduced to scales. They obtain nutrients from the host plant, which they penetrate with suckers. Several species are used medicinally, including C. epithymum (common dodder), once popular among European herbalists for "melancholy diseases" and disorders of the spleen, kidneys, and liver, and C. reflexa, used in Ayurvedic medicine as an alterative, purgative, carminative, and anthelmintic. Descriptions of C. japonica appear in Chinese medical literature of the 1st century CE, based on texts going back to 1500 BCE.

Twining annual, with thin, much-branched yellow stems, which are striped or spotted red. Numerous pale yellow, bell-shaped flowers are produced in short spikes in late summer.

Common Name:	Japanese Dodder
Botanical Name:	Cuscuta japonica syn. C. systyla
Genus:	Cuscuta
Family:	Convulvulaceae
Native Location:	E Asia
Cultivation:	Grows only on suitable host plants. Some species are subject to certain plant controls in parts of Australia.
Propagation:	By seed in autumn, lodged among stems of host plant.
Harvest:	Seeds are collected when ripe in autumn. They are then dried for use in decoctions.
Height:	1m (3ft)
Width:	1m (3ft)
Hardiness:	Hardy
Parts Used:	Seeds (tu si zi)
Properties:	A sweet, pungent herb that acts mainly as a kidney and liver stimulant.
Medicinal Uses:	Internally for diarrhea, impotence, urinary frequency, vaginal discharge, and poor eyesight associated with liver and kidney energy weakness.
Bibliography:	Encyclopedia of herbs by Deni Brown Copyright © 1995, 2001 Dorling Kindersley Limited. pg 187