A Fungicide is one of three main methods of pest control- chemical control of fungi in this case. Fungicides are chemical compounds used to prevent the spread of fungi in gardens and crops, which can cause serious damage to the plants. Fungicides are also used to fight fungal infections. Divisions Chytridiomycota Deuteromycota Zygomycota Glomeromycota Ascomycota Basidiomycota Fungus growing on a tree in Borneo A fungus (plural fungi) is a eukaryotic organism that digests its food externally and absorbs the nutrient molecules into its cells. ...

Fungicides can either be contact or systemic. A contact fungicide kills fungi when sprayed on its surface. A systemic fungicide has to be absorbed by the fungi before the fungi dies. One example is the QoI. QoI, or Quinone outside inhibitors are a group of fungicides used in agriculture. ...

It is used in agriculture to avoid fungus growth because this can harm profits, Corn is often sprayed with fungicides and some fungicides are genitically modified to make sure that they get to wortk straight away by damaging all of the fungal cells. Chemical fungicides however can also cause problems:

1. They can be persistent in the environment and in living organisms; and so do not break down.
2. They bioaccumulate and become increasingly toxic for other creatures in the environment. They can build up to lethal concentrations.

In contexts other than agriculture, the term antifungal is often used for similar compounds. Something antifungal kills or inhibits the growth of fungus. ...

See also

• Antifungal drug
• List of fungicides