Mushrooms-parasites as a threat to grain plants

The main fungal diseases of grain plants are such kinds of parasites as ergot, smut and rust.

The development of ergot begins already in the flowers of rye at the ovary stage, as a result of which sclerotia of this fungus-parasite are formed in the ear, instead of grain, which leads to a decrease in yield. In addition, the sclerotia that have fallen into the grain (which contain poisonous substances) and subsequently milled together with it, cause poisoning of humans and animals. Also, these parasitic fungi can develop on some wild-type cereals and on barley.

Head mushrooms-parasites can develop in the ovaries of flowers. They hit the stems and the point of growth on which the ear itself forms, reduce the yield, which causes great harm to the agriculture. These plant parasitic fungi affect all types of cereals, but the nature of the diseases is different for each type of cereal. The most ruthless parasite is a dusty bunt, the damage from which can reach up to ten percent of crops. In addition, this kind of plant parasitic fungi can also settle on wild grasses.

How do mushroom parasites reproduce, examples are in front of you.

Mycelial fungus, developing in the affected organ, dissolves into spores with almost black membranes, resulting in the stalks (spike) of the plant parasites, the fungus, give the charred appearance.

Affected by a dusty smut, barley forms a spike with a strong deformation, having a dark mass of dusting spores instead of flowers and spikelets, as well as a hard bunt forming its spores inside the grain.

Head mushrooms plant parasites in rye attack the stems of this culture.

Oats are exposed to two types of diseases: dusty and hard bunt (dust is more common).

Wheat, the parasite fungus is affected in the form of a solid bunt.

Mushroom-parasites that cause rust strike the stems and leaves of plants, appear as strips of brown or orange color, which then turn into black or dark brown. Rust is susceptible to both cereal and wild cereals, as well as certain types of other cultivated plants. Although these fungus parasites are not directly damaged by cereal grains, they contribute to the appearance of poorly filled, frail grains and reduced yields. Rust parasite fungi can be conditionally divided into three types:

- Linear rust (most widely distributed among this species);

- brown rust (mainly affecting wheat and rye);

- crown rust (preferring to develop on oats).

Rusty mushroom parasites also affect other plant species, for example, clover, flax, timothy. Even such as a foxtail and wheatgrass, too, can not resist them.

A dangerous factor when infecting the above-mentioned fungi-parasites of wild and cultivated cereals is that they eventually become poisonous and unsuitable for feeding cattle. An example of damage caused by parasitic fungi can be seen in the fact that a hay containing half a percent of affected plants causes heavily cured diseases of livestock, sometimes ending with the death of the animal.

Mushroom parasites of plants infect and winter bread (sclerotinia fungus). To the output of the plant from under the snow stems and leaves are already covered with grayish felt of mushroom threads, which later grow in the vagina of the leaves and inside the stems into dark, small (from one to six millimeters) sclerotia. Then these plants turn yellow and dry and die after the snow falls.

Winter crops are exposed to one more danger, which comes to them in the form of a greenhouse effect. The cause of the effect of the hotbed is the discharge, accompanied with the simultaneous development of parasitic snow mold, in the origin of which the fusarium fusarium is to blame.

With mushroom parasites, one must lead a non-controversial struggle, otherwise we will remain without bread, and without livestock products.