A relatively quick and inexpensive modified cetyl trimethylammonium bromide method for extraction of DNA from leaf materials containing large quantities of mucilage is described. The modification including use of more volume of extraction buffer and dissolving crude nucleic acid pellet in 1 M NaCl, reduced markedly the viscosity of the mucilage and thus in the final purification step yielded a larger quantity of mucilage-free DNA suitable for subsequent PCR-based detection of begomoviruses. The method was standardized with jute samples with yellow mosaic disease and validated with different other mucilaginous-hosts with low titre of begomoviruses. DNA isolated using this method showed consistency in yield and compatibility with PCR for detection of begomoviruses from different mucilaginous plant species. The method was compared for efficacy with other reported methods and it was found to be superior over the existing methods described for isolation of DNA from mucilaginous hosts. Thus the method described could be used on a wider scale for reliable and consistent detection of begomoviruses from mucilaginous hosts for characterization and variability study. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.