and underlying cortical tissue, leading to root lesions. As the disease progresses, the roots are covered by the characteristic cinnamon-colored mycelial strands covered with acircular sterile hyphae, a diagnostic sign of Texas Root Rot. The roots at later stages of infection show extensive vascular discoloration due to root necrosis. The mycelial strands and symptom development in field-infected roots are especially conspicuous on cotton. During the late summer and fall, mycelial strands formed on the root surfaces or in the soil form sclerotia to survive the winter, thus completing the life cycle. Pathogenesis As a soil borne pathogen, P. omnivora enters the plant host via the roots. It penetrates the host by growing infectious hyphae that cover the host plant root's epidermis and eventually infects epidermis and cortical cell junctions of plant host instead of having specialized penetration organs like an appressoria. From there the fungal pathogen infects root vascular system and begin cause cortical root lesions, which is most pronounced in cotton. Microarray analysis and gene expression profiling revealed that certain pathways related to plant defense such as jasmonic acid, ethylene, and flavonoid production were reduced at later infectious stages. This suggests that P. omnivora is able to suppress the production of these phytochemical defenses to ensure disease success. Control The most common management strategy to limit the spread and damage produced by Texas root rot is soil manipulation. The goal of soil manipulation is to create a soil environment that is not favorable to Texas root rot to limit its activity. A common approach is to change the soil acidity/soil pH because the pathogen prefers alkaline soils. A recommended method to decrease soil pH is through the application of ammonium sulfate or ammonium phosphate fertilizer at around 4.5 kg per 9.3 m^2. Applications of fertilizer in this manner causes the soil pH to decrease making it less favorable to Texas root rot disease which prefers a more basic soil environment. This management method is impracticable for any moderate or large scale agricultural operation because of the cost required to amend large areas of soil. However, it is well-suited for hobby gardens or other small scale operations. Texas root displays a varied infection pattern so the most effective treatment plans contain a variety of management strategies. Other control methods for Texas root rot are deep plowing of the soil post-harvest, the establishment of protective plant barriers, and the incorporation of