Biology - Plant Diseases

Introduction

  • Like animals, plants also suffer from verities of diseases.

  • The biological agents that causing diseases to plants are known as pathogens.

Plant Disease

  • Some of the common plant pathogens are −

    • Viruses

    • Bacteria

    • Fungi

    • Nematodes

  • However, some non-pathogenic diseases (in plants) may also occur when the pH value, moisture, humidity, soil, etc. of soil change.

Viral Diseases in Plants

  • The following table illustrates the major plant diseases caused by virus −

Disease Plants Affected
Bud Blight Soy beans
Curly top Beans, tomato, sugar beets, etc.
Mosaic leaf Tomato, tobacco, corn, legume, potato, pea, sugar beet, cucumber, maize, cauliflower, sugarcane, bean, etc.
Yellowing of leaf Barley, sugar beet, potato, etc.
Spotted Wilt Virus Tomato, capsicum, etc.
Chlorosis Virus Tomato, capsicum, etc.

Bacterial Diseases in Plants

  • The following table illustrates the major plant diseases caused by Bacteria −

Disease Plants Affected
Blights Vegetable crops, fruit trees, etc.
Bacterial wilts Corn, tobacco, potatoes, alfalfa, tomatoes, etc.
Bacterial speck Fruits and leaves of different plants
Cankers Woody plants
Leaf spot Cotton, beans, peas, etc.
Soft rots Fleshy or succulent plant parts
Fire Bligh Rosebushes, pome fruit trees, etc.

Fungal Diseases in Plants

  • The following table illustrates the major plant diseases caused by Fungi −

Disease Plants Affected
Cankers Largely woody plants
Downy mildew Grains, onions, cucumbers, alfalfa, etc.
Ergot Rye, barley, wheat and other grasses
Powdery mildew Grains, legumes
Tuber diseases Potato, sweet potato, etc.
Rusts Wheat, barley, rye, oats, etc.
Root rots All types of plants
Scab Wheat, barley, rye, potato, etc.
Smuts Oats, barley, corn, wheat, grasses, etc.
Wilts Potatoes, alfalfa, etc.
Cavity spot Carrot
Leaf blight Carrot
Ring spot Brassicas

Diseases by Nematodes in Plants

  • The following table illustrates the major plant diseases caused by Nematodes −

Disease Plants Affected
Hairy root Sugar beets, potatoes, soybeans, etc.
Root lesions Different species of plants get affected
Root-knot Tomatoes, peanuts, etc.
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