(KFGO News file photo/Nate Coen)
MINNEAPOLIS (MNN/KFGO) – University of Minnesota researchers found fourteen previously unreported species of a devastating “plant destroyer” in the state.
Lead Author Nick Rajtar says Phytophthora is closer to an algae than fungi, but it produces spores and mycelium like fungi do.
“This pathogen, not the same species but the same genus, was responsible for the Irish Potato Famine. So, this has caused large losses all around the world and throughout history.” Rajtar said.
Rajtar says because the pathogen is a water mold, it swims from plant to plant in nurseries, forests, and waterways. He plans to test the newly detected species to better understand how it spreads diseases from host to host.
“They ship their plant material, say, to a nursery in the state, then that state takes the plant, and they resell them to either a landscape company or homeowners. And then they will plant them into their garden or on their landscape, and if there’s phytophthora in there, you’ve now introduced it into the landscape that way.” Rajtar said
With over 5,000 possible hosts, including trees, crops, and ornamental plants, Rajtar says the Greeks named it the “plant destroyer.”
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