Birch polypore (Piptoporus betulinus)

Piptoporus-Betulinus

 

Common host(s)                     Specific to birch.

Colonisation strategy             Spores enter via wounds.

Symptoms                              Annual thick, fleshy, white/cream/greyish initially, become browner with age. Underside white. Horse-shoe or kidney shaped with convex bell-shaped top tapering to a stalk-like attachment to the tree.

Type of rot                             Brown rot.

Part(s) of tree affected          Fruiting bodies usually some way up the trunk or occasionally on branches.

Significance                            Rot severely weakens tissues and will eventually kill the tree.   Brittle fracture.

 

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