Dodder, Fresh Blood

“I do believe Mr. Dodder is overdue for his share. Remember, don't keep it clean and anything goes. Proceed.


And BTW Dodder, get a new stove would ya? ; ) .”

“First off let me say, the gentleman I am, that I owe you and Goose an apology for not saying good-bye to you and also not being able to tell you guys how much I enjoyed hiking with you. I was a little beat, tired and spaced out when we left. Now that Ive said that.......

I know you enjoyed hiking with me. Snoring,farting,hog calls and other interesting things I know you love about me. I know everyone who reads this will jump at the opp to hike with me. By the way, are you trying to get PG? Because we all think you were doing it every chance you had. That may be why you were always last and going to bed so early. Also tent walls are thin!!! At least you aren't a sreamer!!! (I'm I catching on?)”

“Oh yeah, I think the snoring, etc. will definitely start a stampede. Out of camp, that is! Moooowahahahahaha!


What? So we were first into bed and last up and out every day? Maybe we were tired!?! Blink, blink, yeah that's it, we were tired! That's my story and I'm sticking to it ¦ P .”

“We also regretted not getting to say goodbye to you before you left. I was really good hiking with you and I hope I get to again.”

“What are the names of those other DUDES..My Orange Brandy friends, names on this board? So I can be looking for them. By the way, under the "Who have you met board I prased you for knowing what a Dodder was and I challenge anyone else who knows to post. And by the way, ordered new stove and new cookware, MSR Blacklite cookwar and a Primus Alpine Power cooker(it will blow your ass off baby, at 14,000 BTU's.

This is going to be fun!!!! I think the name is perfect ...”

“A "dodder" is the female offspring of a couple who grew up and still lives in Arkansas.”

“buzzzzzzzzzz.....WRONG! And be nice to Arkansa!! Great trails in that state. I completed the Ozark Highland trial by doing sections on the weekend etc. Tim Ernst has written a great guid book on the trail. Unlike most TN trails, that trail is very well marked and has mile markers. Try gain on THE DODDER”

“Welcome to TT!

8)”

“Thanks you it is indeed a pleasure.”

“A constricting wire-like plant?”

“Your are getting close..but to what: constricting? Wire? Like? Plant? But you are wrong. Try again soon......”

“Dodder is a parasitic weed that attacks many vegetables, forage crops, ornamentals and native plants. Dodder attaches to a host plant, drawing off nutrients until the host is severely suppressed or killed. It can attack and parasitize any plant material including weeds, vegetables and ornamentals. Agricultural producers, home gardeners and nursery growers are requested to be on the lookout for this devastating parasitic plant and to take immediate corrective action if the weed is found or suspected.”

“Dodder...did skully ask to borrow your duct tape? *grins*”

“Very good! Now can you describe the plant? And what is another name for it? This is Father Goose and Scullys favorite part of this plant.....”

“That would be a no. What for? It sounds like she didn't need tape to do what she was doing....LOL”

“DODDER OF THYME CUSCUTA EPITHYMUM
He is a physician indeed that hath wit enough to choose his Dodder according to the nature of the disease and humour peccant. We confess Thyme is the hottest herb it usually grows upon and therefore that which grows upon Thyme is hotter than that which grows upon colder herbs; for it draws nourishment from what it grows upon, as well as from the earth where its root is.
Dodder is a parasitic plant and a member of the Convolvulus family. Its stems are like threads, and it bears clusters of white or pinkish flowers but has no leaves. There are many Dodders, but Dodder of Thyme, also called Flax Dodder, is best.
Where to find it: Heaths and grassy places in most parts of the world.
Flowering time: Early summer to early autumn.
Astrology: All Dodders are under Saturn who is wise enough to have two strings to his bow.
Medicinal virtues: it is most effectual for melancholy diseases and to purge black or burnt choler, which is the cause of many diseases of the head and brain, as well as for the trembling of the heart, Paintings and swoonings.
It is helpful in all diseases and griefs of the spleen and the melancholy that arises from the windiness of the hypochondrium. It purgeth also the reins or kidneys by urine. It openeth obstructions of the gall and profiteth them that have jaundice. Dodders found growing upon Nettles bath by experience been found very effectual to procure plenty of urine, where it hath been stopped or hindered.
All the diseases that Saturn causes Dodder helps by sympathy, and strengthens the parts that Saturn rules.
Modern uses: Dodder is a laxative and a liver tonic. It can he used for jaundice and sciatica. The whole plant is very bitter to the taste and an infusion acts as a purge. It is better to add a little ginger and pimento to the infusion of the stems. This acts as a tonic when the kidneys, spleen or liver are affected by any condition. Half an ounce ( 14 g) of the dried plant is boiled in 1 pt (568 rnl) of water, strained and taken in doses of 1 fl oz (28 rnl). The dose of the fluid extract when available is 3o drops. This remedy should not be taken in pregnancy and, because of its purging properties, should he taken only on the advice of a medical herbalist.”

“Parasitic Morning-glory?”

“"On coming in contact with the living stem of some other plant the seedling dodder throws out a sucker..."”

“Dodder, you doddering old fool, I think you are confusing me with Skully's Goose. I'm glad to hear you are getting a new stove. Now, about your TT handle; I think we should call you Tin Man, in celebration of the damn tuna you brought. And next time, bring some friggin' Glenlivet instead of that other swill, and I'll help ya drink it! BTW, I really appreciate your tip about camping at Elkmont, Mother Goose and I really enjoyed ourselves. Look forward to hiking with you next weekend at Savage Gulf.

XXOX

David”

“After such research etc you win the prize!! Where did you get all that stuff? By the way, for all your Dodder fans. In the little brown book on TRails of the Smokies (the bible I must add of the Smokies), you find a description of dodder. They refer to it as the "Love vine." Because in the old days someone would put some on their girl firneds garden. And if it took hold than that girl was meant for them. I guess it didn't work with Brandon and the naked girl in the creek. By the way Stomper, I spent 15 years of my life in MS and lived in Jackson. Worked for McRae's and have down the Black Forrest Trail. What a wuss trail..Indoor OUtdoor carpet on bridges! I reamin the Dodder...looking for a home...”

“So if you have a daughter she will be dodder's daughter.”

“especially if she's Icelandic!

welcome to the par-tay, dodder dude!”

“Laxative, liver tonic, treatment for jaundice and sciatica AND the Love Vine? Hmmmmm, I gotta get me somma dat!”

“Welcome to trail talk.”

“some Love Vine? took the words right out of my mouth. oohhh, you mean...nevermind.
;-P

AND, it helps with this pesky swooning problem. heck yeah!”

“I reamin the Dodder...
dodder
01:20:05 PM
09/06/02

Someone's reamin' the dodder? Ska-WEEEEEL!
BTW, I got sumpin' that'll make ya squeal, bro. Wait'll ya get a load of my home made hot sauce next weekend. Whooooo-EEEEE!”

“Since John is going to join us I'm going to have red beans and rice on Saturday night. Great time to test "Captain Dave's Dynamite" .”

“i am working on the OHT myself in the same manner. have you seen the tim ernst book called "the search for hailey"? i have a story in that book. it is my account of my part of the search for a 6 yr old girl in the upper buffalo wilderness area. anyways.....


so who was fartin and who was moanin? i'm a lil confused, lol. did i miss a trip report?




what naked girl in what creek??”

“Dodder (Cuscuta and Grammica), is a twining yellow or orange plant sometimes tinged with purple or red. Occasionally it is almost white. The stems can be very thin and thread-like or relatively stout (a species characteristic).

Dodder is classified as a member of the Morning-Glory Family (Convolvulaceae) in older references, and as a member of the Dodder Family (Cuscutaceae) in the more recent publications. Welsh et al. reports twelve species of Cuscuta in Utah while Weber (1986) separates this family into two genera with one species in Cuscuta and five species in the genus Grammica. Weber's separation is based on the shape of the stigma.

Dodder parasitizes various kinds of wild and cultivated plants, and is especially destructive to alfalfa, lespedeza, flax, clover and potatoes. Ornamentals attacked included chrysanthemum, dahlia, helenium, Virginia-creeper, trumpet-vine, English ivy and petunias. Dodder is particularly troublesome where alfalfa, clover and onion are grown for seed because dodder seed is difficult to remove from the desired seed crop and can be spread with infested seed. Its water, minerals and carbohydrates are absorbed from the host through haustoria that penetrate the host's tissue. In dodder the haustoria are modified adventitious roots.

Dodder is said (Wilson, et al.) to contain some chlorophyll in the buds, fruits and stems, but the amount of food manufactured in this tissue is of little significance to the survival of the plant.

The flowers are numerous, white, pink or yellowish, small (2 to 4 mm long depending on species), and can be borne in tight balls or in a loose cluster (again depending on species). Flowers normally appear from early June to the end of the growing season. The fruit is about 1/8 th inch in diameter, with thin papery walls and contain 1 to 4 seeds. The seeds are yellow to brown or black, nearly round and have a fine rough surface with one round and two flat sides.

Dodder produces seed that drops to the ground and germinate the next growing season if a suitable host is present. If no suitable host is present, the seed may remain dormant for five years.

Dodder seedlings must attach to a suitable host within a few days of germinating or they die. The young seedling is sensitive to touch and yellowish stem gropes in the air until it makes contact with a plant. The contact is made firm by one or more coils about the stem. If this plant happens to contain foods suitable to the dodder then a secondary stimulus is aroused which causes root-like branches (haustoria) to form and penetrate the stem. The basal part of the parasite soon shrivels away so that no soil connection exists.

Other names of this parasite include love vine, strangleweed, devil's-guts , goldthread, pull-down, devil's-ringlet, hellbine, hairweed, devil's-hair, and hailweed.

Dodder as a vector of disease:

Phytoplasma, the cause of more than 200 so-called yellows diseases (previously thought to be caused by virus) are spread by several different vectors to include leafhoppers and dodder. Dodder has been shown to spread the yellows disease pear decline, aster yellows, tomato big bud, vinca virescence and elm phloem necrosis. In addition, phloem-inhabiting `rickettsialike' bacteria have been found to be present in dodder (Mount and Lacy).

Allowing dodder to spread in a field or garden area is asking for an increase in the plant diseases this parasite is capable of spreading.

Control:

Its wide host range and the long life of its dormant seeds make dodder hard to control and nearly impossible to eradicate. Dodder seed can be spread by irrigation water, in the manures of livestock that have eaten infested alfalfa, or along with the seed of crops that were infested with dodder.

Preemergent herbicides such as DCPA (Dacthal), applied to the soil in the spring prior to seed germination will prevent this pest. Follow label directions!

Pulling and destroying dodder infected plants is recommended. Dodder must be destroyed before it produces seeds or infestations will spread. Once established, dodder appears in patches in the field. Cutting the host plant prior to the dodder producing seed helps reduce the quantity of seed for the following year. Planting an infested field with an immune or resistant crop such as cereals, corn, soybeans, velvetbeans or cowpeas assists in control.

The use of a 2,4-D type herbicide or contact herbicide directed at infected hosts and dodder plants is effective in killing established parasitic plants (as well as the host).”

“so this dodder person is a parasite?? hmmm.....”

“Poor Brandon! It's a shame the naked blonde chickie had a boyfriend in tow or we might have been missing one on this trip!”

“Hell, what gets me is that he said he could have taken him. And I might be left behind also. You know she was so ready she already had a knee pad on!! Whoever posted the article on OHT let me know....I do have the book ON the OHT that I used when I hiked it. What am I? A parasitic, squeling, farting, beer drinking, loud snoring, tuna fish in a "can" eatin, stove blowing up ANIMAL. Creature? the”

“come again? lol”

“Fergit it strat, ya hadta be there...”