powdery mildew

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noun

any of various parasitic fungi of the ascomycete order Erysiphales, which produce a powderlike film of mycelium on the surface of host plants.

Plant Pathology. a disease caused by powdery mildew, characterized by yellowing and death of the foliage and a white mealy growth of fungus on the surface of above-ground parts.

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Origin of powdery mildew

An Americanism dating back to 1885–90

Words nearby powdery mildew

powder puff, Powder River, powder room, powder snow, powdery, powdery mildew, Powell, Powell, Colin, power, power amplifier, power assist

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use powdery mildew in a sentence

Kazakhstan has a cold winter which ensures it has powdery snow until late in the season.
Prince Harry And Cressida Go Skiing In Kazakhstan|Tom Sykes|March 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“Better to wash dirty linen in public than have it grow mildew in a dark cupboard,” a party insider told The Daily Beast.
A Sleaze Civil War Engulfs Britain’s Liberal Democrats|Nico Hines|January 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
"Then the rainiest June since the 1950s helped the spread of downy and powdery mildew" he told The Telegraph.
Bad News for the Bubbly: Champagne Suffers Worst Season in Decades|The Telegraph|August 17, 2012|DAILY BEAST
But the withering mildew was now breathed forth, that was intended to blast this goodly harvest.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter

Also rising here and there in the expanse, clouds that wind skyward, spreading out in a powdery mist.
You Never Know Your Luck, Complete|Gilbert Parker
Then followed a long and at times a somewhat steep climb over soft powdery snow to the top of the pass.
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921|Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury
This wind blew the fine powdery snow off all the crests of the ridges and it penetrated everywhere.
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921|Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury
Snow began to fall now and a regular blizzard set in, the fine powdery snow being blown along the ground into our faces.
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921|Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury

British Dictionary definitions for powdery mildew

powdery mildew

noun

a plant disease characterized by a superficial white powdery growth on stems and leaves, caused by parasitic ascomycetous fungi of the family Erysiphaceae: affects the rose, aster, apple, vine, oak, etc

any of the fungi causing this disease

Compare downy mildew

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for powdery mildew

powdery mildew

[ pou′də-rē ]

Any of various important plant diseases caused by fungi, especially those of the family Erysiphaceae, which produce powdery conidia on the surface of the hosts leaves and stems.