bunt

bunt, fungal disease of wheat, rye, and other grasses. Infection by Tilletia tritici (formerly T. caries) or T. laevis (formerly T. foetida) causes normal kernels to be replaced by “smut balls” containing powdery masses of brownish black spores characterized by a dead-fish odour. Smut balls break open and contaminate healthy kernels during harvest, and the spores may remain alive in dry soil for several years. Seedling infection occurs shortly after kernels germinate in cool, fairly dry soil. Bunt is controlled by growing resistant varieties from fungicide-treated seeds, though it is still a major threat to organically farmed wheat and to farmers in developing countries who have less access to agricultural chemicals.