Fungus

Here's an interesting combo. Firstly because not only is Fomes fomentarius on Birch a rarity together here in the south of the Uk, but even rarer still to find it in tandem with the Birch Polypore.

David,

In The Netherlands and Germany, Fomes is quite common on birch, and because of that, this combination is more often seen, resulting in a broad black demarcation zone where the brown rot of Piptoporus "meets" the white rot of Fomes in the wood.

Kretzschmaria deusta & what appears to be one of the Ganodermas (possibly 'applanatum', though it does have a distinct 'lucidum' look to it, especially with the stalk )

The stalk is formed because of the free space the "wrong" way, i.e. above the stump, directed bracket needs to release its spores, which are then by turbulence blown from underneath and further dispersed by wind.

1. I am not sure it does the fungus any favors to exclude the possibility of it fruiting higher ... David made the point that you will see the dryadeus between buttress roots ... Or that the FB can easily be some distance from the food source I suppose.

2. It maybe of interest to note that in relation to trees and decay, the moisture factor was an issue that seemed worthy of emphasis. David L obviously convinced that the dryadeus is pumping moisture out of the tree/substrate...Whilst this would seem to make good sense, and tie in with the point about moisture and anaerobic conditions being detrimental to fungal lifecycles, I am not sure why this process wouldn't be seen in a more widespread sense were it being actively used as a strategy by fungi.

1. Annually fruiting biotrophic parasitic Inonotus species each have different strategies of decay (white and soft rot) in different tree species.

I. hispidus on Platanus, f.i., prefers to develop its mycelium in the starch rich radial rays, which retract and shorten because of this, causing the bark and cambium locally to develop a "dip", out of which the brackets later emerge, while its strategy in Fraxinus, Ulmus and Malus is spreading its mycelium equally over a much larger area of the trunk at about half way of where the sugars are produced or in branches to be even closer to the "food source" to collect its "energy" from and that is why I. hispidus never is found at the base or lower half of the trunk.

Inonotus dryadeus, however, prefers the base of the trunk, where it is as close as possible to the part of the tree where the assimilation process and the exchange of sugars and nutrients between the photo-energy producing leaves and the nutrients and minerals delivering ectomycorrhizal symbionts takes place, the spot where the richest mix from both sources is made and can easily put a "tap" on to produce bigger yearly brackets then I. hispidus does/can, because of its "poorer" energy source or substrate. And that accounts for the much more detrimental effects of I. dryadeus compared to those of I. hispidus.

2. Pumping moisture out of the living parts of the tree and temporarely storing and excreting (guttation) it in/from the fruitbodies is a strategy to locally highten the concentration of enzymes (and/or toxics) in the parts of the tree the moisture is withdrawn from, thus optimizing the decay (and killing) process. It is not unique for Inonotus species, this strategy and the phenomenon of guttation f.i. is also found in Fomitopsis pinicola (photo 1), Phellinus pouzarii (photo 2) and some Postia or Tyromyces species.

i ask as my azalea last year grew some weird leaf growth but seems to have healed? they were leaves but very thick and waxy feeling and curled, didn't know what it was at the time, but seems fine now?

Exobasidium vaccinii or one of the other 5 species known from the UK living on Azalea and/or Vaccinium ?

Some leaf (and sprouting branch) parasites are depicted and described.

1. Exobasidium vaccinii, a basidiomycete forming gall bladder like structures on (the lower sides of) leaves of Azalea and Vaccinum species of 1-2 cm in diameter, which causes the leaves to curl upwards, outer surface powdery, matt, whitish to pink-red with yellowish margin.

2. Gymnosporangium clavariiforme, a rust, in its wintertime stage living on cultivated Juniperus species other then J. communis, forming orange yellow banana- to irregularly shaped teleutosori on needles and branches, causing necrosis of the affected parts of the tree. In its summertime stage causing orange yellow to rusty stains or spots on leaves of Pyrus.

3. Rhytisma acerinum, an ascomycete with irregularly, flattenend cushion-shaped stromata of 1-2 cm in diameter, outer surface veined, black, inner flesh ochraceous grey, living on/of the leaves of (indigenous) Acer species, infecting the sprouting leaves with spores originating from the stromata on leaves fallen on the ground.

4. Rhytisma salicinum, an ascomycete with elongate, flattened cushion-shaped thin stromata of 1-2 x 0,5 cm, outer surface veined, black, living on/of leaves of willows.

5. Uncinula adunca, the teleomorf of a mildew, fruiting with solitary sunflower or marguerite shaped, a few millimetres in diameter round black circles with marginal whitish "hairs" curved at the tip, growing on leaves of willows.

6. Puccinia spp., one of the many rusts living on leaves, stems and branches of plants and trees, this species on the sprouting branches and leaves of a willow.

are azaleas affected by taphrina species?

Rob,

Only the leaves are affected by fungi, such as Exobasidium vaccinii (see next post), or other Exobasidium species also living on/of leaves of Vaccinium species.

And there is another Taphrina species, T. deformans, which is also is a leaf parasite causing leaf-curl in peach foliage.

Four species of Taphrina are depicted and described.

1. Witches' broom (Taphrina betulina), causing abnormal growth and deformation of branches and leaves of living birches, initially without damaging the tree much. Once more then one half to two-third of a crown is affected, the lack of foliage directly delivering energy (photosynthesis) to the trunk and the roots becomes detrimental to the tree.

2. Taphrina johansonii, during spring forming a golden layer covering the separate inflorescenses and fruits of the female catkins of Populus tremula hanging on the tree, which swell to a thickness of 10 mm.

3. Taphrina amentorum, during spring forming a green to red layer covering the seeds inside female catkins of alder, after which it partially sticks out looking like a flag.

4. Taphrina pruni, during spring forming a purplish layer covering the wrinkled fruits of Prunus species, such as P. spinosa, cherry and plum.

Some footage of spores leaving Ganoderma resinaceum on Quercus rubra

Nice footage, Tony .

I once saw some time frame pictures of Meripilus giganteus, reacting to sudden sunlight falling on it with "ejaculating" whitish "clouds" of spores.

what opinion do you have on Kretzschmaria duesta having the capacity to act saprophytically ? I often come across stumps with both the grey asexual stage & black mature stage FB's on.

As it (always) starts as a saprotrophic, soft rotting and decomposing the dead wood of the central column first, it only needs to invade the cambium and show itself outside with the whitish grey asexual stage to reproduce with conidiospores and with the black crusts to reproduce with ascospores, which is optimal compared to the anamorf phase.

And as I state in my encyclopaedia (page 82) : "also saprophytic on remaining stumps.", i.e. as long as the "food" does not run out.

Take the mans advice pronto.

Tony,

Which our queen did not with rather dramatic results. Some years ago, a collegue and I were asked to evaluate the Royal limes beside the main lane of one of the queen's palaces in The Hague. We found a similar one as above presented with lots of old crusts of Ustulina deusta hidden between the shoots at the base of the trunk.

To test the remaining intact wood at and below ground level, I pushed a spade underneath the tree, which my collegue could grasp at the other side without any resistance. In that moment, the queen passed by in her car, looking very disturbed with what she saw happening.

After we found a second Tilia with U. deusta, we advised to fell both trees at short notice, i.e. in October before the November storms came. Being rather fond of her trees, the queen ordered to leave them be, and the following year, during a February storm, one of the trees tipped over and fell on a wired "electrifying" fence at the bank of a moat meant to keep intruders out, taking fifteen metres of fence down in its fall.

We were then asked to return and monitor and evaluate all Royal limes again, after which we had the other infected Tilia felled at short notice. Her Majesty's secretary told us, that the fencing cost 10.000 guilders a metre. When I asked what a queen would have cost per metre, if the tree had fallen to the other side while she drove by, the man was not amused and my collegue turned red for embarrassment. Being an emperor myself (Keizer = emperor) though, I didn't see much of a problem in my "disrespectful" behaviour.

In spite of my impudence, in the year of the fall of the lime, I was asked to evaluate some old trees in the palace court yard of another royal palace in The Hague. After finding panic reproduction of Meripilus giganteus at the base of an old Platanus, I concluded the tree had to be felled, which happened two days after without protest. I was invited in for tea with her Majesty's secretary, who then admitted, they had not acted very prudent upon our previous advice.

Anyway my question is whats it called? and how long roughly before i need to cut this tree off the womans house?

I found it on a lime with a lot of dead wood and crown die back, i am pretty sure its not good news for the tree but i was wanting some confirmation from the fungi experts before i start wasting my night and possibly tomorrow trying to confirm my thoughts.

David,

The black crusts are of last year's fruiting of Ustulina (= Kretzschmaria) deusta, the mycelium of which must meanwhile have completely soft rotted and decomposed the trunk of the tree at and under ground level and the buttresses and/or roots completely. If the whitish stuff has pores, it might be Physisporinus (= Rigidoporus) vitreus, a annual polypore in this case living on/of the old crusts of U. deusta.

Without hesitation, fell it as soon as possible.

i do learn things:biggrin:

Rob,

You'll do even more once you stop your head banging to the wall !!!

do you ever carry a smaller cam for ease or always go tooled up ?

No, just the digital Canon with two lenses and a small tripod, or if necessary, a bigger tripod, all carried in hand or a photo case and most of the photo's are made without artificial support of the camera.

Without bragging, I have a very steady/stable hand, I even can "catch" hoovering flies in flight with.

Gymnopilus junonius (G. spectabilis).

Annual, in clusters, cap convex to expanded, 5-15 cm in diameter, golden yellow to orange-yellow, covered with adpressed, fibrillose, yellow-brown scales, gills yellow to rusty brown, stem 5-12 x 1-3 cm, fibrillose-scaly, chrome to ochrous yellow, with membranous, yellowish to rusty brown ring and swollen base, flesh pale yellow, taste bitter, spores rusty brown.

Necrotrofic parasite, causing simultaneous white rot in (the base of) the trunks and roots of decideous trees, such as Betula (photo 1/2/3), Quercus robur/rubra, Fagus, Robinia, Castanea, Platanus and Prunus (photo 4).

Especially Betula, Quercus rubra, Robinia and Platanus can loose much of the rootplate at or below ground level and/or the major roots, with the last two tree species being incapable of regeneration of or compensating for the loss of the major roots, once they are destroyed. And the Prunus shows a very typical growth reaction on the trunk after the buttresses have been infected (photo 4).

What/which cameras do you tend to use ?

David,

In the "old days" (slides), Olympus 10n, 1 and 2 with Tamron macro zoom 90 mm 1:2.8 F32, in the digital era Canon EOS 450D with Tamron SP Di macro zoom 90 mm 1:2.8 F32 and Canon EW-78D EFS/IS tele/macro zoom 80-200 mm 1:3.5-5.6 F 32.

Hypsizygus ulmarius. (Lyophyllum ulmarius).

Annual, sometimes tufted, cap hemisphaerical, then convex, 8-15 cm in diameter, smooth, matt, cream to brown with grey tinge, with reflexed margin, gills white to creamy yellow, stem 8-15 x 1-3 cm, striate groved, pale cream, flesh tough, white, smell somewhat sour, spores white to pale cream.

Necrotrophic parasite, often high up on (wounds of) trunks of living or recently dead elms alongside roads or on stumps in parks.

Causing a wet type of white (or soft ?) rot colouring the wood brownish, making the tree (extremely) vulnerable for (parts of) the crown breaking off at great height.

How about a photo of the poplar pholiota, ive been dying to see one and also the piggy back rosegill volvariella surrecta

At your service, sir : http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/fungi-pictures/29239-keizers-fungus-guide.html#post478400 and a photo of my good friend Rob Chrispijn of Volvariella surrecta.

By the way, how do you like the species depicted and described in "Keizer's Fungus Guide" this far ?

Pholiota populnea (P. destruens).

Annual, often growing in clusters, cap convex to expanded with a hump, 6-20 cm in diameter, pale creamy brown to greyish yellow, with large woolly white scales and woolly velar remnants at the margin, gills grey-whitish to dingy brown, stem 6-10 x 2-3 cm, smooth, whitish to pale creamy brown at the apex, with floccolose white scales below the membranous ring and a swollen base. Flesh whitish, taste bitter, smell unpleasant. Spores pale to rusty brown.

Necrotrophic parasitic, on living and dead wood of poplar, often on wounds or saw cuts.

Poplars, like Populus nigra "Italica", which have been topped or heavily pollarded, on the surface of horizontal or vertical saw cuts can easily be infected with spores, after which the mycelium invades the wood column from above or aside and decomposes the wood at high speed, i.e. up to half a metre downwards a year. If the sleeping branch buds high up on the tree are activated, in a few years thick and heavy outgoing branches can be high up on the trunk, which have no more then a few centimetres of bark and living wood to be connected to and held by and easily can be torn off by strong winds and fall because of this.

isnt there a smaller rougher darker puff ball than calvatia?

Tony,

Calvatia, Bovista or Langermannia ? And no, there is not a Bovista smaller then the Giant puffball, which can compete with the one David is holding.

I reckon youve got a wierd formation of rigidiporus populinus, not seen it on oak before.

hang on a mo, thats probably its doppelganger, perenniporia fraxinea

Tony,

Second time around correct , and not on oak. but on ash (Fraxinia).

Brown puff ball b. nigrascens as apposed to the C. gigantia:thumbup1:

Tony,

You're joking, right ? With Bovista nigrescens only being 3-6 cm small ?

Tony,

Looking again and this time at all photo's and not just the first one popping up, I agree : Perenniporia fraxinea , which is just as or even more detrimental to the rootplate of the Robinia as the Phellinus ...

... because Robinia pseudoacacia is not capable of regrowth/regeneration of or compensating for the loss of its major roots.

I reckon you have perenniporia fraxinea

Tony,

Looking again and this time at all photo's and not just the first one popping up, I agree : Perenniporia fraxinea , which is just as or even more detrimental to the rootplate of the Robinia as the Phellinus.

Oxyporus populinus.

Perrenial brackets a console, triangular in cross-section, 3-10 cm wide, surface whitish to pale brown, velvethy, often covered with green algae or mosses, tubes short, 1-2 mm long, white or cream, in thin multiple layers, pores round, 5-7 pro mm, flesh whitish, tough, spores white.

Necrotrophic parasite of broadleaved trees, mainly of Populus, causing simultaneous white rot of the rootplate and the onset of the buttresses.

Sometimes hard to find, if fruiting in between buttresses or hidden in the grass covering the base of the trunk.

Can be mistaken for Trametes gibbosa or other macrofungi with whitish perennial brackets covered by green algae or mosses. Potentially dangerous if overlooked or false identified.

getting back to Armillaria.......

as this from before the ring has broken to provide a visible veil, do you think it could be ascribed as A. bulbosa/lutea ?Stems appear to be bulbose.

David,

No, because of the present bright yellow colour, I would expect this to become Armillaria mellea (mellea = honey) with a well developed white partial veil or annulus with a yellow margin.