symptoms
Symptoms
- circleSwollen, distorted galls on stems, leaves, or flowers
- circleGalls rupturing to release masses of black, powdery spores
- circleStunted or malformed growth on infected plant parts
help
Causes
Caused by various smut fungi (Ustilago and related genera) that infect through young tissue or seed, with spores surviving in soil and plant debris to reinfect future crops.
healing
Treatment
Cut out and destroy galls before they rupture and release spores, and remove severely infected plants entirely to reduce the spore load in the soil.
shield
Prevention
Use disease-free seed or planting stock, rotate crops, and clean up and destroy infected plant debris rather than composting it.