Botrytis, Ergot, &c. Now it is clear that if an organism gains access to all parts of a plant, and stimulates all or most of its cells to hypertrophy, we may have the latter behaving abnormallyi.e.
Pythium, Peronospore, Completoria, Vol utelta, Botrytis, &c. That such overturgescence should lead to the bursting of fleshy fruits, such as gooseberries, tomatoes and grapes, is not surprising, nor can we wonder that fermentation and mould Fungi rapidly spread in such fruits; and the same is true for bulbs and herbaceous organs generally.
Stem rot, due to a mould (Botrytis sp.), occurs in wet weather.
The most destructive is Botrytis cinerea which forms orangebrown or buff specks on the stems, pedicels, leaves and flower-buds, which increase in size and become covered with a delicate grey mould, completely destroying or disfiguring the parts attacked.
Among the most fatal and disastrous of these diseases with which the cultivator had long to grapple was " muscardine," a malady due to the development of a fungus, Botrytis bassiana, in the body of the caterpillar.