Branched broomrape is a non-photosynthetic root parasite that has been recently detected in California-grown processing tomatoes. The yellow, fleshy, leafless stems range from 4 to 12 inches tall, are either simple or branched, and produce blue flowers. The base of the stem attaches to the root of a host plant and siphons all the water and nutrients. The leaves are reduced to triangular flaps on the stem. The seeds are about 0.3 mm long, with a tan or brown color that blackens with age. Phelipanche ramosa can be an annual or a perennial depending on the life cycle of the host. This species is self-pollinating and generally flowers from February to May in its native range. Branched broomrape has a wide host range that includes many vegetable crops and weedy broadleaf plants that are grown in California. Flowering begins within 3 to 7 days after a broomrape shoot emerges above the soil surface. Branched broomrape flowers are spike-like, irregular, bisexual and usually pale white to purple in color. The petals of the flower are merged, tubular and have an upper and lower lip. The carpels are usually united to form a single chamber on the upper part of the flower; this chamber matures into a capsule with thousands of very tiny seeds, each smaller (0.2 millimeters to 0.4 millimeters) than a grain of sand.