Parasitic weeds of the Orobanchaceae family and their natural hosts in Jordan

A field survey of the Orobanchaceae family members and their hosts in Jordan was carried out from 2003 to 2007. The intensity of parasite infection on different hosts and the severity of the infestation were evaluated. The results showed the presence of seven species of Orobanche and three species of Cistanche . The Orobanche species were found parasitizing 86 plant species belonging to 24 botanical families. Most of the species attacked by Orobanche were from the Compositae (20 species), Solanaceae (11 species), Leguminosae (nine species), Umbelliferae (seven species), Cruciferae (seven species), Cucurbitaceae (four species), Labiatae (four species), and Rosaceae (four species) families. Other families were represented by one-to-three species. Cistanche attacked 20 species of forage wild shrubs, fruit trees, and forest trees of seven families, mostly belonging to the Chenopodiaceae (seven species) and Leguminosae (three species) families. Previously unreported hosts for both genera include: Amygdalus communis , Olea europaea , and Quercus coccifera , which were parasitized by Orobanche palaestina ; A. communis , O. europaea , Prunus armeniaca , and Prunus persica , which were parasitzed by Orobanche cernua ; O. europaea and A. communis , which were parasitzed by Orobanche schultzii ; Haloxylon persicum , which was parasitzed by Cistanche lutea ; Punica granatum , Alhagi maurorum , Casuarina equisetifolia , Centaurea postii , and Prosopis farcta , which were parasitzed by Cistanche tubulosa ; and Achillea spp., Anabasis syriaca , H. persicum , Haloxylon salicornicum, Suaeda spp., and Zilla spinosa , which were parasitzed by Cistanche salsa . Certain Orobanche species were completely destructive to the cultivated crops. The results indicated the high potential of both parasitic genera to spread and to attack new hosts, while the threat they impose to agriculture in Jordan will probably result from poor management and deficiences in farmers' training.