Fungus ID

[RPA]

First sorry about the quality of the photos - camera.

 

Asked to do a reduction on this last week. When I got there I noticed a big dif in leaf colour from one side of the tree to the other (multi stemed) but have seen this before this year. On closer inspection old pruning cuts (poor stub cuts) had produced dramatic regrowth and then the branches had died back. Looking round the base of the tree I found several fungus app the size of a 2p and golf ball shaped within 18" of the base of the tree, and to finish things of I couldnt id the bloody thing:015:

I took some branch and fungus samples to an assessor who owed me a favour. He thinks the fungus is feeding on the decay rather than causing it. He also (eventually - so that made me feel a bit better) id'ed it as a black pop hybrid, linking the fast regowth and fast dieback as being typical.

 

Anyone confirm etc this theory?

[Amelanchier]

I thinks the fungi is probably incidental. The fruiting body you have there looks like the common earthball (Scleroderma citrinum).

 

Here's various pics...

 

http://images.google.co.uk/images?hl=en&q=Scleroderma%20citrinum&cr=countryUK%7CcountryGB&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi

 

As for the poplar... no idea

[RPA]

I thinks the fungi is probably incidental. The fruiting body you have there looks like the common earthball (Scleroderma citrinum).

 

Here's various pics...

 

http://images.google.co.uk/images?hl=en&q=Scleroderma%20citrinum&cr=countryUK%7CcountryGB&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi

 

As for the poplar... no idea

 

Thanks

[monkey]

no words of wisdom, but if you find out the cause please pm me - i had 2 lombady's die in about 4 weeks, that i have to remove as they were 6 feet from a tenis court and we couldn't risk the H&S implications. The leaves discoloured, then died in a only a couple of weeks and fell off within 4.....

 

No sign of fruiting bodies and very limited potential for poisoning. bloody mystery?

[RPA]

When I took some of the dying branches out to one of my instructors from collage he could not come up with a reason for the dieback. He could only confirm the dieback appeared to be rapid and would affect the trees safety within a short period of time.

One interesting note was that on branch cross sections it was clear to see where he tree had tried to compartmentalise the decay but had failed.

[nuttyarb]

Hi Edenarb

 

I seem to remember a disease from college called Poplar Canker. Its a fungus or bacteria that damages the cambium and produces swellings in the bark.

 

Hope this helps