Convolvulaceae
Greater dodder
Cuscuta europaea
- Family
- Convolvulaceae
- Genus
- Cuscuta
Pet and kid safety: not checked yet. Check pet-safe plants
Is yours looking unwell? Scan your plant — free
Common names
By language (30)
- Albanian
- Kuskuta evropiane
- Arabic
- حامول أوروبي, كشوث رومي
- arz
- حامول اوروبى
- Azerbaijani
- Avropa qızılsarmaşığı
- Belarusian
- Павітуха еўрапейская
- Bulgarian
- Кукувича прежда, Кускута
- Catalan
- Grande cuscute
- Chinese
- 欧洲菟丝子, 歐洲菟絲子, 大菟丝子, 苜蓿菟丝子, 菟丝, 金灯藤
- Croatian
- Europska vilina kosa
- Czech
- Kokotice evropská
- Dutch
- Groot warkruid
- English
- Greater dodder
- Estonian
- Harilik võrm
- Finnish
- Euroopanvieras, Humalanvieras, Nokkosenvieras, Nokkosvieras
- French
- Cuscute d'Europe, Grande cuscute
- German
- Nessel-Seide, Europäische Seide, Nesselseide, Europäische Nessel-Seide, Europäischer Teufelszwirn, Grande cuscute, Hopfen-Seide
- Latvian
- Eiropas vija
- Lithuanian
- Paprastasis brantas, Grande cuscute
- nds
- Groot duvelsneigaoren, Groot duvels neigaoren
- Norwegian Bokmål
- Snyltetråd, Neslenyltetråd
- Norwegian Nynorsk
- Snikjetråd, Neslesnikjetråd
- Persian
- سس اروپایی
- Polish
- Kanianka pospolita, Kanianka europejska
- Romanian
- Cuscută
- Russian
- Повилика европейская, Повилика горошковая
- Slovak
- Kukučina európska
- Swedish
- Nässelsnärja, Grande cuscute, Hummelbinda, Hörsilke, Nässelsilke, Skorr, Snarreva, Tobändel
- Tamil
- கஸ்குட்டா யூரோப்பியா
- Ukrainian
- Повитиця європейська
- Welsh
- Llindag mawr
Synonyms
- Cuscuta capillaris Edgew.
- Cuscuta europaea subsp. halophyta (Fr.) Hartm.
- Cuscuta filiformis Lam.
- Cuscuta tetrandra Moench
- Cuscuta urceolata Stokes
- Cuscuta viciae F.Schultz ex Des Moul.
- Cuscuta vulgaris Pers.
Flowers
- In flower
- July to August (from 330 flowering iNaturalist observations worldwide)
Characteristics
- Growth habit
- Forb/herb, Vine
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- In the US and Canada
- Lower 48 states: introduced
Photos
FlowerPhoto: bernhard_hiller, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist 
FlowerPhoto: Wolfgang Ahlmer, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist 
FlowerPhoto: Daniel Cahen, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist 
FlowerPhoto: Dave, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist 
Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Bogdan assumed, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Dmitriy Bochkov, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist ![Greater dodder: Seeds of Cuscuta europaea (Great Dodder) [usually] overwinter in the grass sward on the ground, here on the shoots of a coleus, accepted as a host plant, among](/plants/cuscuta-europaea/photos/18e16ff19184a64c-s.webp)
Photo: Spezigiga, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Mirko Ubović, CC0, from iNaturalist 
Photo: Donald Hobern from Copenhagen, Denmark, CC BY 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Donald Hobern from Copenhagen, Denmark, CC BY 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Donald Hobern from Copenhagen, Denmark, CC BY 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Donald Hobern from Copenhagen, Denmark, CC BY 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons
![Greater dodder: Seeds of Cuscuta europaea (Great Dodder) [usually] overwinter in the grass sward on the ground, here on the shoots of a coleus, accepted as a host plant, among](/plants/cuscuta-europaea/photos/18e16ff19184a64c-l.webp)
More in Cuscuta
- Clover dodderCuscuta epithymumConvolvulaceae
- Field dodderCuscuta campestrisConvolvulaceae
- Flax dodderCuscuta epilinumConvolvulaceae
- Cuscuta chinensisConvolvulaceae
- Cuscuta monogynaConvolvulaceae
- Hop dodderCuscuta lupuliformisConvolvulaceae
- Alfalfa dodderCuscuta approximataConvolvulaceae
- ScaldweedCuscuta gronoviiConvolvulaceae
- Japanese dodderCuscuta japonicaConvolvulaceae
- Fiveangled dodderCuscuta pentagonaConvolvulaceae
- Cuscuta australisConvolvulaceae
- Cuscuta planifloraConvolvulaceae
Sources: classification, synonyms from World Flora Online Plant List (2026-06, CC0 1.0); common names, popularity from Wikidata (2026-10-26, CC0 1.0); common names, US characteristics from USDA PLANTS Database (2025-05-29, CC0 1.0). About our plant data.