fire blight

noun

: a destructive infectious disease especially of apples, pears, and related fruits caused by a bacterium (Erwinia amylovora)

Examples of fire blight in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Callery pear tree seeds were brought to the U.S. from China in 1916 to help breeders create fruit-bearing pear trees more resistant to fire blight, a disease that destroys leaves and fruit, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service. Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 23 Mar. 2024 Spray dormant fruit trees and roses now to prevent leaf curl, fire blight, downy mildew, aphids, scale and other problems in spring and summer. Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Jan. 2024 These specialty crops are especially susceptible to diseases like apple scab, a fungal ailment that attacks both a tree’s leaves and fruit with unsightly lesions, and outbreaks of highly infectious fire blight, which can kill entire trees outright. Laura Kiniry, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Dec. 2023 These apples are threatened by fire blight. Heather Souvaine Horn, The New Republic, 24 Nov. 2022 In the early 20th century as a remarkably resilient candidate to replace the edible French pear (Pyrus communis), which was being wiped out by fire blight in the Pacific Northwest. Melissa Breyer, Treehugger, 25 Jan. 2023 Spray dormant fruit trees now to prevent leaf curl, fire blight, downy mildew, aphids, scale and other problems in spring and summer. Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2023 This past year, my flowering quince shrub suffered some dieback from what I was told was fire blight. Miri Talabac., Baltimore Sun, 21 Dec. 2022 Winter is the best time to trim off branches infected with fire blight. Miri Talabac., Baltimore Sun, 21 Dec. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fire blight.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1742, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of fire blight was in 1742

Dictionary Entries Near fire blight

Cite this Entry

“Fire blight.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fire%20blight. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on fire blight

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!