Since it must infect through the open florets, this gives the fungus a competitive advantage by allowing it to fall down to the healthy plants and ensuring that the fungus has a little extra time to produce and disperse spores before the florets of the healthy plants open.

The teliospores in the smutted grain heads disperse to the open flowers of the healthy plants, and the cycle continues.

In order to get to the open flowers of healthy plants, the teliospores must be moved by wind or rain or possibly insects.

If dry, calm conditions persist for the entire time the flowers are open, the infection rate will be low.

Conditions in Eastern Europe, Western Siberia, and the Northern Caucasus regions are some of the most conducive to loose smut.

Since the fungus grows up with the plant, it is very important that the fungicide used to treat the seed be systemic and not just external.

The most common type of systemic fungicides used for loose smut are from the carboxin group of chemicals.

In areas where people depend on their grain crops for survival and don't have the money or technology resources to control it, the disease can be devastating.

Loose smut has recently become a more serious problem in the Ladakh region in the Himalayan mountains of India.

In places like the United States where there are ample resources and technologies such as fungicide seed treatment, loose smut is not an especially important disease.