B. subtilis is not considered to be a plant pathogen
However, there are several reports in the literature that associate B. subtilis with certain plant diseases. Kararah et al. (1985) produced soft rot of garlic cloves by injecting B. subtilis into them.
Bergey's Manual of Systematic Bacteriology notes that pectin and polysaccharides of plant tissues can be decomposed by B. subtilis and that this microorganism can cause soft rot of potato tubers
There are several abstracts obtained in a literature review that suggests that B. subtilis may cause other plant diseases, however, no more information was obtainable. One abstract reported that B. subtilis was the cause of a broad open cancer ulcera on Norway maples in forests in the Urals
Another reported that an organism tentatively identified as B. subtilis was consistently isolated from glasswort (Salicornia) plants suffering from a soft-rot disease