This fungus is associated with "damping off" of seedlings in two nurseries of the State Forest Service and in a commercial nursery in Kumeu, North Auckland (Bassett, 1961); Hunter (1961) recorded it from wilted seedlings in nursery soils partially sterilised with methyl bromide.

Type: Radicicolous Fungi; Description: Colonies on agar reddish brown, radially striate, becoming granular from the abundant sclerotial bodies. Conidiophores penicillately branched, ultimate branches bearing 2–4 doliiform to oval phialides, 7–12 × 3–4 μm, producing a sterile, 2–4-septate appendage, terminating in a clavate or ellipsoidal vesicle, 19–38 μm long. Conidia cylindrical, 0–1-septate, 50–58 × 4–6 μm, hyaline.

Distribution: Northland, Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Taranaki, Taupo, Wanganui, Wellington, Gisborne, Nelson, Dunedin.; 1st Record: Bassett (1961).

Significance: Recorded by Bassett (1961) as causing serious damping-off in several forest nurseries. The fungus may attack the succulent stem or first leaves as well as below ground plant parts. This occurs under conditions of high humidity following heavy rain or over-watering and the fungus may spread rapidly between seedlings (Dick & Vanner 1986). Boesewinkel (1986) confirmed the pathogenicity of C. scoparium to Acacia longifolia and Feijoa sellowiana in inoculation tests and reported it as the cause of root-rot in many tree hosts.; Host(s): Abies procera, Acacia longifolia, A. mearnsii, A. melanoxylon, A. verticillata, Beaufortia sparsa, Callistemon citrinus, Coprosma sp., Cordyline australis, Cryptomeria japonica, Erica sp., Eucalyptus erythrocorys, E. fraxinoides, E. muelleriana, E. saligna, Feijoa sellowiana, Larix decidua, Macadamia integrifolia, Metrosideros excelsa, Penstemon hartwegii, Persea americana, Pinus nigra subsp. laricio, P. radiata, Platycladus orientalis, Prunus avium, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Rhododendron indicum, Telopea speciosissima, Thuja occidentalis, T. plicata.