Stategies of decay fungi

[David Humphries]

The thread on Inonotus got me to thinking.

So here's another pictoral on the onset of decay, and what the decay looks like.

 

Ganoderma adspersum (me thinks)

 

Host in this case was Ash.

Targets were path and highway.

Colonised via the waterlogged root plate where heart wood was exposed due to tension fracture of butress.

Decay type is White Rot.

Significance; causes heartwood and large root decay.

G adspersum is believed to be the most agressive of the Ganoderma sp and can/does breach the reaction zone, and can even utilise this as a nutritional substrate.

 

 

Management control in this instance was; decay detection (arborsonic), reduce, plant replacement (alder), monitor annually then fell after three years.

 

 

 

In other words, if you find adspersum in standing trees, clasify it as high risk.

 

 

Feel free to add/correct or challenge, as this is posted not just for information, but also to be a learning tool for myself.

 

Most important of all, is for you guys to delve into your collective photo and experience banks and add.

 

So, who's next and what ya got?

[Jack-Arb aka Tiago Sinclair-Julio.]

Colonised via the waterlogged root plate where heart wood was exposed due to tension fracture of butress.

 

Hi Dave,

 

Just read your post and agree with most of the things you say and the way you decided to manage that particular tree. The one thing I dont really understand is how can one say that the tree was infected via one way or the other.

 

When I think of fungii that have spores as the way of colonising other trees always makes me wonder what are the chances of these tiny spores blowing in the wind, and findind a open wound to enter there host. The chances seem so small, but there not cause theres plenty of infected trees around to prove it!

 

But yeah my point is that I'd never really heard of infection entry point being that clear cause any broken branch or prunning cut are pontentially an entry point...

 

Any how, good way to think about these things!

 

Good night

 

Tiago

[Tom D]

Hi Dave,

 

Just read your post and agree with most of the things you say and the way you decided to manage that particular tree. The one thing I dont really understand is how can one say that the tree was infected via one way or the other.

 

When I think of fungii that have spores as the way of colonising other trees always makes me wonder what are the chances of these tiny spores blowing in the wind, and findind a open wound to enter there host. The chances seem so small, but there not cause theres plenty of infected trees around to prove it!Tiago

 

I think the reason they can infect trees so easily is that there are billions and billions of them. If all the spores from one puffball germinated for two genrations the mass of puffballs produced would be larger than the earth.

[Amelanchier]

...what are the chances of these tiny spores blowing in the wind, and finding a open wound to enter there host. The chances seem so small, but there not cause theres plenty of infected trees around to prove it!

 

But yeah my point is that I'd never really heard of infection entry point being that clear cause any broken branch or pruning cut are pontentially an entry point...

 

Fungal spores are everywhere. We're breathing millions of them in right now, "tree" fungi spores included depending on where you are!

 

The second you pull a silky into a branch you allow oxygen, spores, bacteria and viruses into live cells. As the man said; "pruning is wounding".

 

It is possible to interpret the patterns of decay (especially those that take a long time) by looking for reaction zones and relating that to adaptive growth and codit formation. Not always clear cut but a bit of Tree CSI is always a challenge!

[Jack-Arb aka Tiago Sinclair-Julio.]

Fungal spores are everywhere. We're breathing millions of them in right now, "tree" fungi spores included depending on where you are!

 

The second you pull a silky into a branch you allow oxygen, spores, bacteria and viruses into live cells. As the man said; "pruning is wounding".

 

It is possible to interpret the patterns of decay (especially those that take a long time) by looking for reaction zones and relating that to adaptive growth and codit formation. Not always clear cut but a bit of Tree CSI is always a challenge!

 

Hi there,

 

I do know that spores are in the air in there milions, and that they can be in a tree for years until the conditions are just right for it to activate itself and start its life cycle.

 

But what I dont really understand is, can one say with a degree of certanty that a tree got infected through a particular prunning wound or any other place?

 

And does the location of the fungal fruiting body on the tree mean that the infection entry point was around that area? I dont think so because like any disease, symptons not always reflect what area the fungii is!

 

Is this correct?

 

Thanks any one who could make this a little clearer for me!

 

Tiago

[Amelanchier]

I think for certain fungal species, we can say with a fairly high degree of confidence that an infection is related to a specific injury. For example, Polyporus squamosus typically infects and decays old branch stubs and the pattern of decay is often limited to the branch protection zone. In such a case, knowing tree and fungi biology, we can make a judgement to the mode of entry. I agree though, that other species may more difficult to diagnose the origin of infection.

 

I suppose that the more extensive the decay, the more difficult it is to interpolate the causality of the infection. Its never going to be something concrete without access to a lab, so more often than not I think a professional opinion based on probabilities is more than adequate!

 

Certainly in the stump shot above, the most significant decay (and therefore most likely to be the oldest) is located around that buttress that Monkey refers to. Whether the tension crack occurred prior to decay or afterwards is an issue that he might clarify his thoughts on... Monkey? Care to elaborate on how you determined the mode of infection!!

[Mike Hill]

Could it not be equally possible that "bumps" from lawnmowers caused the wound that was the entry point for the Fungus?Given that a mower is almost a giant blower and whipping up all sorts when its also cutting the grass?

[David oakman]

I have not seen Ganodera on an ash, not saying that it dosnt. last week i had a large ash fall over a public footpath large brackets of polyporus all wood a butt soft. also isaw a horse chestnut in a churchyard topped for safety reasons the following year all cuts had large brackets of polyporus. where i work Ganoderma seems to be in small areas, but last year i had Ganoderma Resanacium appear but where did that come from as that is the only one. fungal spores how far do they travel who knows? I have mostly oak and the oak does stop ganoderma and survive,sorry imust point out i mean english oak, red oaks no go the ganoderma spreads from the butt and climbs up to a meter high by that time the tree is pulp.

[David Humphries]

[quote=Monkeyd;49479Colonised via the waterlogged root plate where heart wood was exposed due to tension fracture of butress.

 

Guess I should have de-qualified (sic) this statement with the term - possibly.

 

There were vertical cracks at ground level at the butress where the fruiting bodies were. (not evident on the stump picture)

This led me to hypothisize that this may have been ground zero.

 

 

 

 

.

[David Humphries]

Hosted here on Quercus patrea, sometimes Fagus and Castanea.

 

Slow coliniser of the heartwood via the roots and lower stem (allthough I have seen a fruiting body @ 3m)

Decay type; Brown Cubical Rot, which can lead to brittle fracture.

 

The local target is a path.

Significance; Due to this fungi rarely causing failure, this tree will stay monitored with no action taken.

The Staining of the Timber is however valued highly as a veneer.

So if things get tight, I'll fell this old Veteran, clean up (sic) and head off in to the sunset