Look who's popping out to say howdeedoodee !

[David Humphries]

Just walking back through zee voods from a site meeting, when your intrepid Tree student espied this lonely looking dead Sorbus.

 

Thought I'd take a wee closer look.

 

Often find Armillaria rhizamorphs whilst scratching about around the base of trees, but have, until today, not seen the "search and destroy" tendrils actualy going in ( or is it out in this case ? ) through the cambium of a root.

 

 

Apart from the above brackety bit, the most interesting thing I found was that the dead trees pretty prolific suckers were getting away happily ignorant of Mr Tree Death lurking at such close quarters.

 

.

Edited July 16, 2009 by Monkey-D

[Bundle 2]

" ( or is it out in this case ? ) "

 

It would be no more than logical to assume the Armellaria spp was infact the cause of death...(? ) This tho' maybe the honey fungus in saprotrobic mode...Who's to say the tree, whilst apparently growing healthy tissues, actually has its defense systems systemically activated from previous "pathogenisis" resulting in an unaggressive exploitation of dead tissue by honey fungus. Afterall, we know the fungus is a clever git but we also know it can be a benign and beneficial recycler, seen in most all woodland ecosystems.....!

It all depends on the history and course of events that lead to its' demise.....

[David Humphries]

" Afterall, we know the fungus is a clever git but we also know it can be a benign and beneficial recycler, seen in most all woodland ecosystems.....!

It all depends on the history and course of events that lead to its' demise.....

 

 

Don't it just

 

I seemed to perceive that the rhizomorphs were tapering away from the host to apical tips.

 

Not picked up on tapering away from host, by the bootlaces before.

Always was under the impression from reading, that movement was commonly by mycelial spread via root graphs.

 

Maybe seeing too much into it.

 

 

 

 

 

.

[Bundle 2]

As I understand it the mycellium does indeed "extend " at the tip only via cell division....They can alter tactic from using the energy derived from decaying of woody tissues in the immediate vicinity to using it to "extend" their mycellial network in search of more woody materials-but that this requires more energy for the fungus..

I read somewhere how many metres of mycellium are under your foot at any given time in a woodland...it was "fall off my chair " staggering!!