Manyflower Broomrape: The Mysterious Parasitic Wildflower You Can’t (And Shouldn’t) Grow
If you’ve ever stumbled across a peculiar brownish plant with small clustered flowers while hiking in the American West, you might have encountered manyflower broomrape (Orobanche ludoviciana multiflora). This fascinating native wildflower has a secret that makes it completely unsuitable for your garden—and it’s not what you might expect!
What Makes This Plant So Different?
Manyflower broomrape is what botanists call a parasitic plant, which means it has given up the whole making your own food thing that most plants do. Instead of producing chlorophyll and photosynthesizing like a responsible plant citizen, it sneakily attaches itself to the roots of other plants and steals their nutrients. Think of it as nature’s ultimate freeloader!
This annual forb typically grows 4 to 12 inches tall and produces small, tubular flowers that range from purple to pink, arranged in dense clusters. The entire plant has a brownish appearance since it lacks the green chlorophyll that gives most plants their color.
Where You’ll Find This Sneaky Native
Manyflower broomrape is native to the lower 48 states and naturally occurs across a wide swath of the American West and central regions. You can find it growing wild in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.
Why You Can’t Grow It (Even If You Wanted To)
Here’s where things get interesting for gardeners: you simply cannot cultivate manyflower broomrape in a traditional garden setting. Since it’s a root parasite, it requires specific host plants to survive. Without these hosts, the plant cannot obtain the nutrients it needs and will not survive.
Even if you could provide the right host plants, there are several reasons why you wouldn’t want this plant in your garden:
- It can weaken or potentially harm host plants by stealing their nutrients
- Its aesthetic appeal is limited—the brownish stems and small flowers aren’t particularly showy
- It’s unpredictable and difficult to control once established
- Propagation is extremely challenging and not practical for home gardeners
Its Role in Nature
While manyflower broomrape might not be garden-worthy, it does play a role in natural ecosystems. The small flowers do provide some nectar for insects, though they’re not considered significant pollinator plants. In the wild, these plants are part of the complex web of relationships that make up healthy ecosystems.
Better Native Alternatives for Your Garden
If you’re interested in supporting native plants from the same regions where manyflower broomrape grows, consider these fantastic alternatives that actually want to be in your garden:
- Purple Prairie Clover (Dalea purpurea) – gorgeous purple flowers that pollinators love
- Blanket Flower (Gaillardia aristata) – cheerful blooms that thrive in similar conditions
- Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) – fragrant flowers that attract butterflies and bees
- Blue Grama Grass (Bouteloua gracilis) – a beautiful native grass for western gardens
The Takeaway
Manyflower broomrape is one of those fascinating plants that’s better admired from a distance during nature walks rather than invited into your garden. Its parasitic lifestyle makes it impossible to cultivate traditionally, and even if you could, it wouldn’t make a great garden companion for your other plants.
Instead, focus your native gardening efforts on the many wonderful non-parasitic native plants that will thrive in your garden while supporting local wildlife. Your plants (and your garden) will thank you for it!
