PULLMAN - It almost sounds made-up, a winter scare tactic for farmers. But scientists say it's a very real threat in the Northwest: It's called snow mold.

"Snow mold is a disease that can occur on wheat and other plants," said WSU Professor of Plant Pathology Tim Murray. "It's not limited to wheat. Just about any plant that is under snow for a prolonged period of time can be affected by snow molds."

Murray said generally a snow blanket is good for the winter wheat crop, protecting it from cold temperatures and from drying out when the wind picks up. But, if the snow stays on the ground for too long, usually around 100 days, fungi can come in contact with the wheat in the humid environment.

It has been known to ruin entire crops.

"We have a few kinds of snow mold, mainly," said Murray. "We have one that's called speckled snow mold. It's called speckled snow mold because after the snow melts, you will see these little dark-colored structures developing on the surface of the plants. Pink snow mold is called pink snow mold because when the snow first melts, you have this salmon colored material on the surface of the plant."

Murray said the latter is often seen on lawns after a long winter, and could be seen in the area this spring. As for the wheat crop on the Palouse, snow is still covering it from what's being dubbed one of the harshest winters in nearly 20 years. However, it's only been on the ground for about 45 days.

"Compare that to north-central Washington I mentioned as a real snow mold area and we're approaching 100 days of snow cover right now," he said. "So, for us in the region (Palouse), I'm not too worried about snow molds being a problem."

Murray and other researchers at WSU are working with plant pathologists in Hokkaido, Japan, where similar snow mold problems are found. He said they're breeding certain types of wheat that are resistant to snow mold, which is already helping farmers in snow-covered central Washington, and will benefit the Palouse as well.

"Even though the growers in this region don't have to worry about snow mold so much, they're still benefiting from this type of research," he said.