Category: Woodlands | Accent on Natural Landscaping

Forest Fire causes Fungi to Grow

November 15, 2019

Fire-loving fungi are among the first organisms to appear on the forest floor after a fire, followed closely by mosses and lichens. Photo by Karen Hughes

With all the forest fires rampaging through the drought-stricken areas of the USA and Canada, there appears to be at least one other glimmer of goodness that comes from all this damage. I think we’re all familiar with the Lodgepole Pine (Pinus contorta) from western USA, which requires fire to melt the resin from its serotinous cones so they can germinate. But there is also a fungi which becomes active and grows after a forest fire. It is called Pyrophilous.

A variety of club mosses (*Lycopodium* spp) appear on the stump and around it on the forest floor.

A study conducted by Daniel B Raudabaugh etal suggests that Pyrophilous taxas are endophytes of bryophytes and club moss, and also endolichenic fungi of lichens. What this means is that the Pyrophilous fungi which appear out of the ashes of a forest fire are apparently living patiently in the bodies of mosses and lichens just waiting for a forest fire to free them to grow.

Further investigation needs to be conducted to determine the extent and duration of the endophytic relationship – can it go on forever if there is no forest fire?

Other research has suggested that Pyrophilous fungi spores lie dormant in the soil or that they occur as mycorrhiza root pathogens or soil saprobes. Still other evidence suggests they might also be found in tree trunks or the tree canopies. However, there is still a lot to research about the Pyrophilous taxa.

A really good layman’s explanation of this phenomenon can be found in PhysOrg

Other Plants Requiring Fire to Germinate

Other pines which produce serotinous cones include the Jack Pine (Pinus banksiana) aka Scrub Pine which grows in North Central and Northeastern USA and Table Mountain Pine (Pinus pungens) aka Hickory or Prickly Pine which grows in the Appalachian Mountains.

Another plant which appears after a forest fire in Northern California and Southeastern Oregon is the Baker’s Globe Mallow (Iliamna bakeri) aka Baker’s Wild Hollyhock. This flowering shrub needs the extreme heat of fire to germinate and produce its beautiful pink blossoms.

Vocabulary (in order of use):

Serotinous means remaining closed on the tree with seed dissemination delayed or occurring gradually.(Merriam-Webster)

Fungal endophytes are extremely common and highly diverse microorganisms that live within plant tissues, but usually remain asymptomatic. (Oxford Academic)

Endolichenic fungi are diverse groups of predominantly filamentous fungi that reside asymptomatically in the interior of lichen thalli. (ResearchGate)

Mycorrhiza is a a beneficial type of fungi that grows in association with most plant roots. … Mycorrhizae also release powerful enzymes that help dissolve nutrients such as organic nitrogen, phosphorous, and iron. Mycorrhiza may also be known as fungus root. (Maximum Yield)

Pathogen is a biological agent that causes disease or illness to its host. The term is most often used for agents that disrupt the normal physiology of a multicellular animal or plant. (ScienceDaily)

Saprobes are the group of fungi that act as decomposers, feeding on dead and decaying wood, leaves, litter, and other organic matter. To digest this they secrete enzymes that break it down. (Te Ara)

Thalli plural for tallus refers to the body of a plant that does not have leaves, stems and roots. In botany, historically, this term has been applied to algae, fungi and the various divisions of bryophytes. Although algae and fungi are no longer classified as plants, the term thallus has been retained to refer to the bodies of algae and fungi. (Botany Dept U of Hawaii at Manoa)

2019 Fall Colors

October 25, 2019

Reference my post Why the Colors of Fall. This year here in East Central Wisconsin one can really see a difference in the colors of fall. The wet year we’ve had has produced variations in leaf color and the recent mild temperatures have slowed the change. But if you look closely, here and there you’ll find some bright oranges and beautiful golden yellows.

The orange leaves of the Blue Beech aka American Hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana) are flanked by the green leaves of a hawthorn (Crataegus spp) in the foreground and the yellow leaves of an American Hophornbeam ((Ostrya virginiana) in background fall 2019.

The leaves of the American Witchhazel (Hamamelis virginiana) will turn yellow later in the fall, but its teeny tiny yellow flowers add a touch of cuteness to fall 2109.

Branched Coneflower aka as Brown-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia triloba) is the last thing blossoming in my prairie fall 2019 .

Th leaves of the Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) are typically a lovely reddish orange. Not quite so fall 2019.

The red leaves of the Red Twig Dogwood aka Red Osier Dogwood (Cornus sericea ) are in the background and burgundy leaves of the Gray Dogwood (Cornus racemosa) are in the foreground fall 2019. The green leaves in the background are non-native Norway Maple (Acer platanoides).

The seedhead of the White Baneberry aka Doll’s Eyes (Actaea pachypoda) are strking fall 2019

The leaves of the Shagbark Hickory (Carya ovata) are typically a golden yellow fall 2019.

This mystery tree has beautiful red leathery leaves this fall. I always thought it was an American Beech (Fagus grandifolia), but their leaves are typically more orange.

Eastern Candlewax Lichen (Ahtiana aurescens)

September 18, 2019

My most recent wildflower adventure took me to our hunting property for the first time this year. Between the rains which sometimes make the lane in impassable; the horrible storms which have caused so much damage in my own landscape; and my volunteer commitments, there just wasn’t an appropriate time for me to get out there until now.

But the rains had subsided for awhile and my brothers and a nephew cleared away the fall-downs at the hunting property, so a time presented itself.

Oh, what a wonderful feeling to be back at this very special place. Our hunting property is not the hardwoods you see with White Trilliums and Solomon Seals. It’s primarily a cedar swamp with lots of ledge rock which means it has very different, very special species of plants. Lichens, for example.

Eastern Candlewax Lichen

The Eastern Candlewax Lichen (Ahtiana aurescens) grows throughout Northeastern USA, and “is most commonly found on cedars and pines, and rarely on hardwoods. It is pale gray-green on top, in overlapping lobes whose shape is somewhat similar to oak leaves. The underside is pale brown, and shiny. The apothecia—small goblet-shaped fruiting bodies—are brown in color and less than ¼” (7 mm) in diameter.” (FloraFinder)

General overview of lichen morphology

I found this image and general overview on the WDNR (Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources) webpage. I thought it might be of interest to others also.

Lichens represent a unique symbiotic relationship between two or sometimes three organisms: a fungus; an alga; and/or a cyanobacterium. This figure provides a good overview of a generalized lichen. The main body of the lichen is called the thallus. The thallus is the vegetative part of the lichen (i.e., not including any reproductive structures like apothecia) and is often what we visually associate with a lichen. The figure above depicts a foliose thallus with the upper surface curled up in places to reveal the lower thallus surface. The magnified thallus cross section on the right shows a number of additional layers. In this example, the top layer is the upper cortex, which is made up of fungal filaments. Underneath that is the photobiont, either an alga or a cyanobacterium or both. Beneath the photobiont is a loose layer of fungal strands (hyphae) called the medulla, and below the medulla is the lower cortex.

Lichens can reproduce sexually via spores, which are associated with the fungal component of the lichen. However, these spores must again find an appropriate photobiont before a new lichen is formed. Lichens can also reproduce asexually. The two structures shown in the box on the left function in asexual reproduction. Both isidia and soredia are essentially photobionts wrapped in a fungal skin. These can be released from the thallus to form new lichens. (WDNR)

See the Glossary of Common Lichen Terms for descriptions of more lichen-related terms and photos that depict these features.

Remembering

September 11, 2019

During our last walk around the hunting property, my brother Dave and I found the Purple Fringed Orchids (*Platanthera psycodes*) he had discovered the previous year. It was the perfect memory for our last adventure.

This week is the fifteenth anniversary of my oldest brother Dave’s passing. Dave was my turkey hunting partner. We shared the joy of being at our hunting property — hiking and exploring, learning about all the different plants, watching how the hydrology changed what we saw from one year to the next, watching the birds and listening to their different calls, catching sight of the various animals as they stealthily picked their way through the underbrush…

And learning how to hunt turkey together. Oh the stories I could tell about our fun times — about the ones that scared us “half to death,” about the ones that got away, and about the ones that didn’t!

He died much too young, of course, and our family has felt his loss immensely. The brain tumor that took him from us has taken many other heroes also. Senator John McCain for one. I pray the researchers will find a cure for this horrible disease soon.

My oldest brother — my turkey hunting partner — passed away at 11:30PM fifteen years ago yesterday. This bench sits near the Red Oak tree we planted in his memory. He enjoyed visiting this habitat so very much. Now he’s there forever.

I love the way the moss clings to the angel. It comforts me to know the woods clings to him just as I do his memory.

Many different mosses, clubmosses and woodland flowers grow at the base of my brother Dave’s memorial Red Oak (Quercus rubra) and throughout our woods. It’s my goal to continue learning about all these plants.

Note: Coincidentally, 9/11 happened just three years earlier — another day to remember!