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Causal organism - Alternaria and Cladosporium species
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These fungi are saprophytes and are not host specific . They can affect all cereals.
The usual symptoms of sooty moulds is a darkening of the ears before harvest. This is commonly seen when weather conditions are wet, but severe symptoms are often associated with root or stem base diseases which cause premature ripening of the crop. Delays in harvesting in wet weather can lead to severe blackening of ears which can lead to discoloration of the grain at harvest.
