The smuts are fungi, mostly Ustilaginomycetes (of the class Teliomycetae, subphylum Basidiomycota), that cause plant disease. Divisions Chytridiomycota Zygomycota Glomeromycota Ascomycota Basidiomycota Yellow fungus For the fictional character, see Fungus the Bogeyman. ... Classes Subdivision Teliomycotina    Urediniomycetes Subdivision Ustilaginomycotina    Ustilaginomycetes Subdivision Hymenomycotina    Homobasidiomycetes - mushrooms The Division Basidiomycota is a large taxon within the Kingdom Fungi that includes those species that produce spores in a club_shaped structure called a basidium. ... Phytopathology or Plant Pathology is the science of diagnosing and managing plant diseases. ...

Smuts affect grasses, notably including cereal crops such as maize. They initially attack the plant's reproductive system, forming galls which darken and burst, releasing fungal spores which infect other plants nearby. In popular language grass means a short, green, ground covering or lawn, usually, but not necessarily comprised of a true grass or grasses, called turf. ... Cereal crops are mostly grasses cultivated for their edible seeds (actually a fruit called a caryopsis). ... Binomial name Zea mays L. Maize (Zea mays ssp. ... Kalanchoë infected with crown-gall using Agrobacterium tumefaciens. ... The term spore has several different meanings in biology. ...

A smut infestation is controlled by removing and destroying the infected plants.

Corn smut, which infects maize, is also sold as a food in Mexico, and was originally first eaten by the Aztecs. Binomial name Ustilago maydis (Persoon) Roussel Corn smut is a disease of maize caused by the pathogenic plant fungus Ustilago maydis. ... Binomial name Zea mays L. Maize (Zea mays ssp. ... The word Aztec is usually used as a historical term, although some contemporary Nahuatl speakers would consider themselves Aztecs. ...