sooty mold

American

noun

Plant Pathology. a disease of plants, characterized by a black, sooty growth covering the affected parts, caused by any of several fungi.
any fungus causing this disease, as molds of the genera Capnodium, Phragmocapnias, and Scorias.

Etymology

Origin of sooty mold

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It then excretes a sticky, sugary waste called honeydew that attracts insects and a form of sooty mold that can finish off the already weakened plants, posing a danger to crops and native trees.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 28, 2023

Indirectly, sooty mold can damage crops and reduce farmer’s yields, too.

From National Geographic • Aug. 31, 2023

They feast on more than 70 plant species and leave behind “honeydew” droppings, which attract wasps and other stinging insects and which breed a black, sooty mold that can significantly damage plants.

From Scientific American • Sep. 17, 2021

The sooty mold coats plant leaves and prevents sunlight from reaching the leaves’ surface.

From Washington Post • Sep. 13, 2021

Leaf blister, sooty mold, oak wilt, leaf scorch: Been there, done that.

From "Wishtree" by Katherine Applegate

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023