I have an ancient White Oak growing next to my house that has some fungus growing at the base of the trunk for the first time this year. I am going to get an arborist to come, but want to post a photo and ask for any assistance here for additional knowledge. I've had the tree professionally trimmed up every 3 years or so, and it has seemed very strong and healthy. This worries me. It has about a 100' wide canopy. I am attaching a photograph for reference. It seems very hard which surprised me. Any information would be useful, and perhaps I should post in another forum as well. Many thanks. I'm in coastal NY suburbs.
I'm sorry to relay that usually by the time you see fruiting bodies (mushrooms), the fungus has well infused its host. On the more optimistic side, some fungal species are slow decayers, in some cases very slow, so depending on the identity of the fungus, your Oak may still have long life. Could you describe the undersurface of the fruiting body? Thanks, frog
I just saw your reply, thank you frog. I knocked off a piece and the underside is perfectly smooth and a fairly even medium dark greyish brown, except at the edges where it is more like the lighter top color. There were just a few black linear spots that may or may not be part of the actual fruiting body. I did have an arborist come who said it was an indication of root rot and recommended cutting the tree. I can take a photo of the underside as well if it would help.
Would you have the opportunity to ask the arbourist which root rot fungus this is? I'm thinking that since arbourists must be faced with various fungal invasions of trees, including root rots and trunk rots, they would know the names of the fungal species and the relative speeds of the different rots. I've never worked with an arbourist, so I don't know, I'm just assuming. Aside from that, yes a photo of the underside would help with identifying your fungus: When you look closely, do you see pores on the underside?. The top and underside colours I'm finding a bit confusing, but this may be the aging of the fruiting body. Also, here's a link listing some oak rots, it's not quite from your region, but includes fungi that would be in your region http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/pp/notes/Ornamental/odin30/od30.htm. - frog
Thank you, the link is very informative. It looks exactly like the Inonotus dryadeus fungus photo. The one I took a photo of is quite large, and there are smaller ones going more than half way around the base. There is also a whitish coloration on the bark itself all around the base. I read something about that as well being associated with this fungus. He pointed out a plant growing in the main crotch of the tree as well, which he said indicated decay. I will look for the pores later with a magnifying glass if I can find the one I have.
The underside is covered with small pores, clearly visible with magnification. I took a photo, attached.
