Golden dodder (<i>Cuscuta campestris</i>) is a serious threat! Potential impacts of this vampire pest plant

<p dir="ltr"><b>Background</b></p><ul><li><i>Cuscuta campestris</i> or golden dodder is a fast growing annual parasitic plant, present in spring and summer, that hosts on a wide range of herbaceous plants.</li><li>Its impacts relate to its parasitism, smothering habit and chemical control selectivity being difficult without killing</li><li>It is a serious weed in 25 crops in 55 countries.</li><li>An MPI listed unwanted organism, sometimes found as a seed contaminant, NZ has wild populations present in the Waikato, NZ.</li><li>Eradication in the few NZ sites are eluding current control measures.</li></ul><p dir="ltr"><br></p>