Plants, like animals and humans, can also become diseased. In fact, there is a much wider number of plant diseases than there are human or animal diseases simply because there are more plant species involved in agriculture, horticulture and forestry than in medical or veterinary medicine.
The science of plant diseases is called plant pathology, or phytopathology. There are a wide variety of microorganisms such as fungi, bacteria, viruses and nematodes that cause these diseases. Diseases caused by these pathogens are often called biotic diseases. Also, environmental conditions, such as winter damage or drought stress, can cause disease in plants. Diseases caused by these factors are often called abiotic diseases.
Plant pathologists are responsible for studying plant diseases, and their studies include various aspects of plant diseases, such as the organisms and environmental conditions that cause disease in plants, the mechanisms by which these factors cause disease, the interactions between these causal agents and the plant, and methods for managing or controlling plant diseases.
The science of plant pathology is closely allied with other sciences such as botany, mycology, microbiology, genetics, chemistry, horticulture, agronomy, and soil science. Plant pathologists integrate and use information from many of these sciences to develop insights into disease development and disease control.