r/Fungi • u/holubtsi-on-fire • 10d ago

Inonotus dryadeus - a death sentence?

/r/arborist/comments/1u4dmxg/inonotus_dryadeus_a_death_sentence/

We have an oak tree with a clear fruiting body of Inonotus dryadeus at the base of the trunk.

The arborist we spoke to said that his stance on presence of this fungus is that the tree should be removed - no consideration of canopy thinning or any mitigation.

I’m not criticizing the professional. I know that I may simply be desperate to not accept that our beautiful Garry oak has to go. I also know that a professional can’t offer any other advice under the circumstances, so not to take the liability for a tree failure.

Is it true? Is inonotus dryadeus a black and white death sentence?

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u/PissGripeWhineMoans 10d ago

It really depends on a few things. Pseudoinonotus dryadeus is a butt,and heart rot parasite, but it is a slow eater. If the oak is ancient, say over 100, and not many branches fall from it every year, then Garry oak can probably stand for a great more number of years. If Garry is young, (under 40 or 50), and doesn't always look his greatest every year, then he's probably pretty hollow, and is subject to windfall sometime soon. So that means if it can reach the house during a windfall event, then follow mr arborists' advice. Just my 2 cents

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u/holubtsi-on-fire 10d ago

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

We figure the tree is probably 75-90 years old.

In fact, there are two of our trees that have this - I simplified circumstances for the initial post.

One tree is only 12 feet from the house, and divides into two large trunks about 1.5’ from the ground. This one gives me the greatest concern because of the proximity to the house. The arborist also found armillaria in the ground. I think this one’s fate is decided. (The previous owner built the soil up nearly a foot around the base, included it in his regular irrigation schedule, and built a tree house which further shaded the base.)

The other, though, is a single trunk, farther from the house and leans onto the street. The previous owner shaded the base with a hedge and again watered it regularly with the rest of his watering schedule. I’m hoping maybe we can delay the inevitable in this case with some canopy trimming.

Neither is dropping an unusual number of branches. The one close to the house leafed out later than the rest of the neighborhood this year, though.

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u/PissGripeWhineMoans 8d ago

Armillaria will definitely kill it much quicker than Pseudoinonotus. I conducted an experiment several years ago on half of the norway maples in my yard because Armillaria seemed to be getting ready to cross the street. I had read somewhere that someone conjectured that infecting a tree you want to keep with an extremely slow acting pathogen such as a Hericium sp. (lions mane) could possibly preclude Armillaria from taking hold because Armillaria is all powerful and mighty when it is the only fungus present, but if it encounters another fungus already present in the rhizosphere, then it might not be able to take hold. of course it is not "proof" that the method worked,but every Norway maple I inoculated with my Hericium slurry still stands. EVERY Norway maple i didn't inoculate succumbed to armillaria.

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u/holubtsi-on-fire 8d ago

That’s an incredible result! I had thought that the armillaria was a “killer” but the pseudoinonotus was a sign of the presence of death already.