Dodder is pretty, at least to the small child I was when I first remember seeing it. I used to pick bits while walking home from school and then scatter them. When I found out it was a parasite, I felt like I might have been a plant murderer by scattering.
Yes, dodder does feel like soft plastic. It doesn't look quite real, as though perhaps some tourist child had attacked the plant with orange silly string.
Many years later, when I saw some in my vegetable garden and consulted the UC Ag advisor about getting rid of it, I found that it has very small flowers which make seeds which are often scattered by birds or wind.
Here is a photo of dodder flowers:
Here are some beautiful snow plants, also parasites. We cannot leave them out. Parasites are wildflowers, too. Right?
