I wrote a research paper last spring on Fireblight
, or Erwinia amylovora, a "Gram-negative, motile, aerobic to facultative anaerobic, non-sporulating bacteria ecologically associated with plants" (Brenner, 1984).
This was the first bacteria shown to infect plants, and, furthermore, prove that bacteria can infect plants at all. The Germans were very adamant against the concept, but an American showed them what was up and founded a new school of microbiology.
Fireblight is nasty shit. It doesn't die because it's capable of surviving extremely cold weather. It eats all the apple trees, along with other Rose family members like pear trees. A bad rainstorm can infect a whole orchard and the plants rot with a burned looking appearance, oozing out slime. The disease spread across America in about 100 years after it came from Europe and is worldwide now. Once it comes to an area, it seems pretty much stuck there and farmers have to do what damage control they can every season. Big money damage with this thing.
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Kinda neat for a disease I choose at random.