Orobanche fasciculata

Orobanche fasciculata is a species of broomrape known by the common name clustered broomrape. It is native to much of western and central North America from Alaska to northern Mexico to the Great Lakes region, where it grows in many types of habitat. It is a parasite growing attached to the roots of other plants, usually members of the Asteraceae, such as Artemisia, Eriodictyon, and Eriogonum. This plant produces one or more stems from a thick root, growing erect to about 20 centimeters in maximum height. As a parasite taking its nutrients from a host plant, it lacks leaves and chlorophyll. It is variable in color, often yellowish or purple. The inflorescence is a raceme of up to 20 flowers, each on a pedicel up to 15 centimetres (5.9 in) long. Each flower has a calyx of hairy triangular sepals and a tubular corolla 1.5–3 centimetres (0.59–1.18 in) long. The flower is yellowish or purplish in color.