Question
Hello, I am very curious,I noticed that there were long vines sticking out of the lilac bushes. Then I looked into the source and found them growing horizontally out of the stem itself.
The leaves are similar in shape to the lilac, but not as smooth. They grow in a single vine, twirling at the ends. In some places they curl around the "trunks" of the bushes and die there in the winter. There were many dead vines from previous years that indicated this. They do not cut in to the branches of the lilac, I did not see any flowers (yet). The stems are green and dotted with white lumps. I did take a picture of it where it attached to the lilac, though I do not see anywhere to include it. Thank you for your time.

Answer

Dodder   Hi Sarah,

It must be Dodder (Cuscuta Campestris).  Dodder starts out green, then the vine turns orange as it feeds off the plant.  The white lumps are the flowers, which will later form seed.  The seed can live dormant for 50 years, so it's important to attack it before the seed can mature.  I'm including a picture.
It's also called "love vine", because girls used to pick it and throw it over their shoulder into uninfected bushes.  If the Dodder "took", then they would meet their true love.
Thanks,
Susan