Orobanchaceae
Cowpea witchweed
Striga gesnerioides
- Family
- Orobanchaceae
- Genus
- Striga
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Common names
By language (3)
- English
- Cowpea witchweed, Indigo witchweed, Purple witchweed, Tobacco witchweed
- Hausa
- Tokar dawa
- Malayalam
- അള്ളാൻകിഴങ്ങ്
Synonyms
- Buchnera gesnerioides Willd.
- Buchnera hydrabadensis Roth
- Buchnera orobanchoides R.Br.
- Campuleia coerulea Bojer ex Benth.
- Campuleia rosea Bojer ex Benth.
- Chorobanche indica C.Presl
- Harveya varia Hook. ex Steud.
- Microsyphus parviflorus C.Presl
- Orobanche indica Spreng.
- Orobanche varia E.Mey. ex Steud.
- Psammostachys varia C.Presl
- Striga chloroleuca Dinter
- Striga gesnerioides var. arondensis M.R.Almeida
- Striga orchidea Hochst. ex Benth.
- Striga orobanchoides (R.Br.) Benth.
- Striga scottiana Jeeva, Shyn.Brintha & Rasingam
Characteristics
- Growth habit
- Forb/herb
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- In the US and Canada
- Lower 48 states: introduced
Photos
Photo: Marco Schmidt [1], CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Lalithamba from India, CC BY 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons Photo: Susan Brown, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Pl@ntNet via GBIF 
Photo: Dinesh Valke from Thane, India, CC BY-SA 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons Photo: Marc Rousseaux, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Pl@ntNet via GBIF 
Photo: Dinesh Valke from Thane, India, CC BY-SA 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons Photo: Vaishnavi Gaonkar, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Pl@ntNet via GBIF 
Photo: Dinesh Valke from Thane, India, CC BY-SA 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons Photo: Suhas Gurjar, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Pl@ntNet via GBIF 
Photo: Dinesh Valke from Thane, India, CC BY-SA 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Dinesh Valke from Thane, India, CC BY-SA 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Nativeplants garden, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Wikimedia Commons
More in Striga
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- Striga asperaOrobanchaceae
- Denseflower witchweedStriga densifloraOrobanchaceae
- Striga elegansOrobanchaceae
- Striga aequinoctialisOrobanchaceae
- Striga angolensisOrobanchaceae
- Striga barthlottiiOrobanchaceae
- Striga bilabiataOrobanchaceae
- Striga forbesiiOrobanchaceae
- Striga junodiiOrobanchaceae
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.