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Plant Disease Management
Gray Mold
Casual Agent
The disease is caused by the fungus Botrytis cinerea. This fungus is very common in most agricultural systems and causes disease on a wide range of crops. The fungus grows well on dead and decaying plant tissue and can live indefinitely in the absence of a living host. Cool moist conditions favor the growth of the fungus and in such environments, it can produce abundant airborne spores on a weekly basis. The fungus can also produce hard irregularly shaped sclerotia which are long-lived resting structures. However, not all strains produce sclerotia.
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Paul Bachi, University of Kentucky Research and Education Center, Bugwood.org