Erysiphaceae
| Powdery mildews | |
|---|---|
| Golovinomyces sordidus demonstrating typical white patches on a leaf of Plantago major | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Leotiomycetes |
| Order: | Helotiales |
| Family: | Erysiphaceae Tul. & C.Tul., 1861 |
Erysiphaceae (commonly known as powdery mildews) is a family of ascomycete fungi in the order Helotiales. The members of this family are obligate parasites with a superficial mycelium that forms a characteristic white, powdery coating on their host plants.
The family contains seventeen genera and around a thousand species. Combined they infect over 10,000 species of plants, many of which are commercially valuable.