Fusarium pseudograminearum

Crown rot of wheat is caused by the fungal pathogen Fusarium pseudograminearum. F. pseudograminearum is a member of the fungal phylum Ascomycota and is also known as Gibberella coronicola (teleomorph). It is a monoecious fungus, meaning it does not require another host other than wheat to complete its life cycle. Although F. pseudograminearum can produce both anamorphic and teleomorphic states, the teleomorph is usually not present for crown rot of wheat. This Fusarium species has, until recently, been considered to be the same as the species known as Fusarium graminearum (head blight of wheat) due to many similar characteristics. One of the only differences between the two species is that F. pseudograminearum lacks its sexual stage on the wheat host. An important characteristic in terms of infection that also distinguishes F. pseudgraminearum from F. graminearum is that F. pseudograminearum rarely infects the head of the wheat plant, only the crown, whereas F. graminearum can infect the entire wheat host. Other than these differences, the signs and symptoms of both fungal pathogens are very similar, showing necrosis of the stem base and crown. F. pseudograminearum also produces mycotoxins once colonization of the wheat has been fully established, which are responsible for the majority of the symptoms produced. Crown Rot of Wheat is an important plant disease that needs to be well managed due to its detrimental effects that it can have on entire fields of wheat. The infection of F. pseudograminearum can develop during stressful water deficits in fields and can spread quickly to other wheat plants, whose symptoms will ultimately lead to plant death.

from Wikipedia