**Turkey-X Disease deserves a special mention. Aflatoxin was first discovered by observing a "plague" that occurred on many turkey farms, particularly in England in the early 1960's, where the turkeys died rapidly and in great numbers. Since the causal agent for the disease was not known, it was simply called "Turkey X disease." Mycologists later discovered that the turkeys had been fed peanut meal contaminated with Aspergillus flavus and related species. Although aflatoxin is widely known for its carcinogenic properties, under the conditions present at that time these fungi produced aflatoxin in such great quantities as to rapidly kill the turkeys. This is no longer a problem since the peanut meal, if used to feed the birds, is monitored very closely for the fungus. There is no chance of turkey containing aflatoxin today.

More than a million people died of starvation in Ireland in 1845-1846, and another million emigrated, mostly to the east coast of America.

It's a Chytrid, a fungus with swimming spores. It mostly lives inside the host cells of the potato-hence the endobioticum.

Affects the fruits, stems and leaves, causing a wilt. Not surprisingly it occurs earlier in the growing season than late blight.

A post-harvest disease, usually exacerbated by poor storage conditions and poor curing (drying). Affected potatoes become soft and watery.

The main fungus responsible for cranberry crop loss in Wisconsin. Early infection causes crop loss. Infected fruits fail to ripen

A relative of Phytophthora, it causes lesions with geometrical margins on the lettuce, making it unattractive for sale. Severely affected leaves rot or dry out.

Infected fruit may have black spots in the field and collapse soon after harvest from internal rotting. Doesn't that sound yummy?

The fungus contain the precursor to LSD and other secondary alkaloids, some of which cause gangrene.

Aflatoxin has been shown to be carcinogenic at 1 ppb (that's one part per billion).

Although considered a delicacy in Mexico, corn smut is responsible for billions of dollars in corn crop losses worldwide.

You've seen this one-- Green beans get horrible rotting black spots on them.

Chestnut blight, accidentally introduced into North America about 1904, has virtually wiped out the American chestnut in its native range in the eastern USA.

The main detrimental effect of the rust on food production is in the reduction of the amount of rolls & stuffing that are available. The fungus attacks the wheat and drains vital sugars from the plant, reducing the yield.

Besides drastically decreasing the yield of wheat, this fungus harms the crop in another way-- it produces two major mycotoxins, zearalenone and deoxynivalenol.

Powdery mildews can cause significant loss of yields in cereal grasses and other types of crops.

The fungus rots the fruit and in many cases secretes mycotoxins into the food.

The rust cases premature defoliation of the plant, resulting in reduced yield and even death of the plant. Occasionally the unripe green berries are even infected.

So called because the fungus attacks the growing parts of the sugar cane and rots them, causing the cane to smell like overripe pineapples.

Attacks the large beet growing underground, often wilting the plant and causing death, or at least very low sugar yields.

Trichoderma is a mold that can infect the mycelium and fruiting bodies of other fungi!

This is a sliced tofurkey from Thanksgiving dinner 2000 in Oregon with Kelly Collins, Nancy Weber, Eric Hill and others.

Yum! I can't think of anyone who wouldn't like stuffed vegetarian tofu turkey!