... some Master Gardener Trivia!
The plant disease, coffee rust (Hemileia vastatrix) is the reason the English drink tea! Apparently they were big coffee drinkers until an epidemic of this plant!
The plant disease, stinking smut (Tilletia foetida) is responsible for the invention of ginger bread! This disease of wheat made flour smell bad. Ginger was added to cover up the smell and and avoid wasting the flour!
These may not be as important as the Irish potato famine, but they are two more examples of how a plant disease can change the world!
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