Common Fungal Diseases in Plants

What are some common fungal diseases that affect plants?

1. Smut of grains

2. Red Rot of sugarcane

Common Fungal Diseases in Plants

Smut is a fungal disease that affects grains and is caused by fungi within the Ustilago, Tilletia, and Microbotryum genera. Red Rot is a disease of sugarcane and is caused by the fungus Colletotrichum falcatum. Both of these diseases can negatively affect crop yields.

The diseases mentioned here, smut and red rot, are both diseases caused by fungal infections in plants. Smut is a fungal disease that impacts various types of grains. The fungi belong to the Ustilago, Tilletia, and Microbotryum genera. They infect the grains and cause the kernels to become powdery and black, thus culminating into smut diseases of grains.

On the other hand, Red Rot is a destructive disease of sugarcane caused by the fungus Colletotrichum falcatum. It affects the cane stalks causing them to decay and turn red. This disease significantly affects the overall yield and quality of the sugarcane crop.

Both these fungal diseases can have serious implications on the productivity of these crops, and appropriate preventative measures should be taken while cultivating these plants to avoid the spread of these diseases.