Convolvulaceae FAMILY

Cuscuta chinensis

Edibility

0/5

Medicinal

3/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Botanical Description

Cuscuta chinensis is a parasitic, herbaceous perennial plant, devoid of chlorophyll and obtaining its nourishment from the host plant around which it twines. The plant is often used in traditional Chinese medicine, where it is harvested from the wild and sold in local markets. Cuscuta species can severely affect the plants they parasitize - when this involves plants sown as crops, yields can be badly impacted. Many Cuscuta species, therefore, are classified as weeds and sometimes have controls over their movements.

Habitat & Origin

Origintemperate

Native RangeNortheast Africa; Asia from Arabia to Kazakhstan, east to Russian Far East (Primorye), Japan and Vietnam; Australia; southwest N. America.

HabitatNear seashores, C. and S. Japan[ 58 Title Flora of Japan. (English translation) Publication Author Ohwi. G. Publisher Smithsonian Institution Year 1965 ISBN - Description The standard work. Brilliant, but not for the casual reader. ]. Parasitic on a wide range of mainly herbacous plants, growing in fields, open mountain slopes, thickets and sandy beaches; at elevations up to 3,000 metres in most parts of China[ 266 Title Flora of China Publication Author Website http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/ Publisher Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis. Year 1994 ISBN Description An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available. ].