smut fungus
Definition
Noun 1. A plant-pathogenic fungus: "Smut fungus" refers to any fungus belonging to the order Ustilaginales. These fungi are parasitic, typically infecting the flowering parts of host plants (especially grasses and cereals) and converting them into a dark mass of spores.
Examples of Usage
- The farmer was concerned about smut fungus infecting the corn crop.
- Smut fungus can cause significant economic losses in agriculture.
- Researchers studied the life cycle of the smut fungus affecting the wheat plants.
Advanced Usage
- The term is often used in plant pathology and mycology. It can be part of compound names for specific diseases (e.g., corn smut, loose smut of barley), but these are considered distinct terms.
- The characteristic symptom is the production of sooty, black spore masses (the "smut") that replace plant tissues.
Variants and Related Words
- Smut (noun): Can refer to the disease caused by a smut fungus or the dark spore mass itself.
- The ears of corn were covered in black smut.
- Ustilaginales (noun): The taxonomic order to which all smut fungi belong.
Synonyms
- Smut (in the context of plant disease)
- Ustilaginaceous fungus (technical term)
Related Phrases/Idioms
(This term is highly specific and technical; it is not commonly used in idiomatic expressions or phrasal verbs.)
Noun
-
any fungus of the order Ustilaginales
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