AbstractThe effect of cuticular waxes on the infection rate of pathogenic fungi. 2. Rhytisma acerinum, Microsphaera alphitoides and Fusarium oxysporum. Cuticular waxes of Acer and Quercus species stimulate germination rate and germ‐tube development of certain foliar pathogens. The stimulation increases with host susceptibility. In the case ofRhytisma acerinum, the chemical composition of the leaf wax may be responsible for the host specificity of physiological races. Cuticular waxes showed a marked effect onFusarium oxysporumalso.In some cases, individual chemical components of different fractions seem to play a role in the mechanism of resistanc