Can anyone help id funghi pls

[Marc Lewis]

I wanted to check with others that this is ganaderma. It is located on beech.

[David Humphries]

Yes, Ganoderma.

 

I would lean toward G. applanatum/lipsiense as opposed to G. australe/adspersum, but confirmation would need to include microscopy.

 

 

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[Marc Lewis]

Thank you David. Are they both as detrimental to the trees health?

[Paul Melarange]

Marc, it's not so much how they affect the trees health but the stability. However, the health of the tree has a huge influence on the rate at which the fungus will colonise and decay the wood.

 

So if the tree demonstrates normal vitality i.e. normal shoot extension growth, normal crown density, normal leaf size and colour etc, it is likely that the stability of the tree will not be compromised for many years. A sounding mallet will help you to determine how hollow the tree is (obviously this doesn't tell you anything about the roots) but it will help you to make a more informed decision regarding the management of the tree.

 

It is also worth considering the size of the trunk relative to the height of the tree and the size of the crown. Trees with particularly large trunk diameters are often still strong enough to support the tree even when there is less than 1/3 residual wall thickness.

[Paul Melarange]

Marc, Just looking at the photos again, are the brackets coming out from the union of co-dominant stems?

 

Is it possible to post some pictures of the whole tree? I'd be really interested to see.

[Marc Lewis]

Thanks Paul, some really interesting information there. The tree is very mature, dbh 1.5ft and probably a good 80ft tall. There are several houses within falling distance and one in particular that the tree towers over. Here are several more photos. It is the larger of the 3.

 

Also, there is a bracket (the one with my hand in frame) approx 15' up the trunk and looks like it could be dead or dormant, is this possible? And the other bracket is much higher approx 30' in the tree (one with my boot in the shot) which looks living.

[Marc Lewis]

Could someone advise me here. It has been suggested by another tree surgeon that the fungal bracket lower down the tree i.e. the picture with my hand in shot, is dormant, dead or similar though the one higher in the tree i.e. the shot with my boot in view, is live. Can anybody confirm this please?

[David Humphries]

It looks to me like the thin tiered brackets are no longer a functioning part of the fungus. The underside pore layer and rim edge would be white if it was still alive and viable.

 

The smaller/plumper bracket looks to have a live pore and rim layer.

 

 

 

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[Marc Lewis]

Thank you David, its good to have a second opinion on this. This is all interesting stuff and an area i wish to learn more about. So the underside and rim needs to be white for it to be alive?

[Marc Lewis]

Out of interest, what would others opinions reccomendations be for this tree, bearing in mind there are about 5 houses within falling distance and one in particular that the tree towers over.

 

The union in the picture runs some 1.8 metres down the trunk.