David Humphries

P. schweinitzii is an annual fruitbody, your example is the end of its maturation. It has developed, sporulated and then desiccated. Next year it ‘may’ develop a new fruitbody.

Desiccated fruitbody of Phaeolus schweinitzii

Few saprobes at work from the last couple of days. Lepista nuda - the Wood Blewit, Fomitopsis betulina - the birch polypore, Schizophyllum commune - the split gill, Clitocybe nebularis - the clouded funnel.

1842 surely?

Probapossibly

Think we may have a Werewolf at large at work, not entirely sure I want to meet it face to face !

Thanks for the article Always going to be prized as a target that one. The two fruiting sites where I work are relatively closely guarded secrets and not out in the open so should stay free from foraging. Especially as one of them is 10m up trunk on a cavity 😄

Where from?

Gymnopus (Collybia) fusipes can often be found on oak, sweet chestnut, beech , hornbeam and other species, but not personally seen it associating with Acacia. For me, these have the look of either Gymnopilus junonius or Pholiota squarossa (with the squamules washed off) But as Jules has intimated, images of the gills, stem and/or spore print would help us.

Have you looked at the Vetcert standards? The training material and programs are still in development but looking like it will be available next from year. https://vetcert.eu/standards-certificates Yeah that’s a nice example that beech, G. australe is pretty rife below and above the graft but it’s hanging in there. We have plans to reduce the sail. Did you peel off from the walk at the end and go and find it afterwards? Bit too far off from the route of the walk to include on the day, there was a lot to pack in.

A different Ulmus 'New Horizon' that was posted earlier in this thread. This one (planted in 2004) nearly succumbed to the drought conditions in 2006 (and compaction) So we perforated the soil, watered it regularly, mulched, and it eventually picked up vitality. Looks pretty good now.

4 years on and the local LA have removed this cherry posted earlier in this thread. Although the outer canker was seemingly not eating away at a particularly fast rate the actual vitality of the tree was in significant decline. Hopefully will be replanted in the next round of replanting.

Thanks . Does this mean the tree is diseased or anything ? Or that's just where they like to live lol There will be some volume of dysfunctional wood around the root collar/buttress interface.

Pholiota squarrosa, the shaggy scaly cap

Hi David, thanks for that. I hoped I was right. Are they harmful to trees, saw some on a sycamore with significant surrounding features/targets as well. Jan. Saprophytic species feeding on dysfunctional and dead wood volumes, in this case possibly an area of a root girdle, or dead stem section or dead roots. Perhaps worth considering excavating around the fruit body site to find out what's happening.