The dodder plant also referred to as spaghetti weed is taking dominion over other parasitic weeds in the outskirts of Kisumu.
Along the roads or in the fence of the homesteads during the walk, you are prone to encounter leafless plants twinned or coiled on other plants. This plant is in the group together with alfalfa, flax, lespedeza, dahlia, helenium, and trumpet vine among others.
The plant is becoming common in most parts of Seme Sub County in Kisumu.
The spaghetti weed has its origin in America and Canada and is mainly a survivor of temperate areas and its survival extends to tropical conditions.
The greatest of the species diversify in subtropical and tropical regions.
While the residents of Seme name it 'achuogra' meaning wanderer, in other places it is called witch plant due to its spread and nature of survival.
The plant belongs to the dodder plant family cuscutaceaes, cuscutta spp.
The cuscuta spp known as cuscuta or amarbel is a genius of over 200 species of yellow, orange, or red parasitic plant. It is classified in the family of cuscutaceae convolvutaceae, on the basis of the work and similar characteristics of the Angiosperm.
This type of dodder plant is parasitic in nature and it infests many crops and plants as well as attaching itself to other weeds, its high haptic effect makes it easily attach to other host plants. and it may be ornamental.
It has twining stems that vary from pale green to yellow-orange in colour.
Dodder plants do not directly kill the host but limit its photosynthetic energy. They weaken the host hence slowing or stunting growth, this is because they lack chlorophyll and hence cannot perform photosynthesis to make starch.
The plant coils around the host plant and uses knob-like structures called haustoria to grow into vascular tissues of the host. This technique enables them to acquire water and nutrients from the host enough for them to survive.
The characteristics of this plant vary from one species to another. Most of them are characterised by a thread-like, parasitic, leafless annual vine with bright yellow stem and are widely distributed, most of the time it looks like a tangled mass of yellow spaghetti, typically wraps around narrow-leaf cattails.
The plant can grow and attach itself to multiple plants. In tropical areas, it can grow more or less continuously and may reach high into the canopy of shrubs and trees
In cold temperate regions, it is an annual plant and is restricted to relatively low vegetation that can be reached by new seedlings each spring.
Scientifically, it is an ectoparasite and is categorised as a holo-parasitic plant or plant that is non-photosynthetic and hence host dependent.
The effects of this plant range based on the species, the species of the host, and the time of attack.
By debilitating the host plant, the dodder plant decreases the ability of the plants to resist viral and bacterial diseases. If it is attached to more than one host plant with diseases it may spread that specific disease across the farm and may even act as vectors of fungal and pest spread.
Agriculturally, there is economic concern in the agricultural sector, where an annual drop of 10% in yield can be devastating if the dodder plant is not contained.
The residents of Seme are now urging relevant authorities to wade in and help mediate the effect of this horrific plant for them. They claim the spread of the plant is easy and quick as they claim that even children unintentionally pick them and drop them anywhere leading to easy spread. They say mishandling of the weed by children and perhaps adults may make the plant invade their farms and the agricultural produce is deemed to be reduced.
The residents who mostly are small-scale farmers now need the governments, both the National and County Governments to come in for their rescue before they fall into the pangs of hunger.
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