Sierra Tree and Fungi

06/19/2026

Do you know what lignin is?

For a many years I thought it was singular substance. It is made up of three different monomers, which can be in different proportions in different tree species.

Besides being the basis of wood, which is a super material unto itself, lignin can be used to create so many different resources which can help us live more sustainably in the future.

So give some appreciation trees impressive biochemistry skills.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2589014X23001342

06/15/2026

Digging through a Jeffrey Pine (Pinus jeffreyi) stump last week when I found is a $1 billion dollar fungus.

This innocuous little polypore can be difficult to find, even in an area where it’s killed many trees trees. This species, Heterobasidion irregulare, is not uncommon, but uncommonly found by most mushroom hunters. This, and other species in the genus Heterobasidion, are known for an aggressive white rot that causes significant decay and impacts tree health.

So who put a $1 billion dollar price tag on it? The timber industry. Experts estimate each year there are $1 billion dollars worth of trees on forestry land is are killed or destroyed by species in this genus and almost that same of damage is reported in Europe. They can hit hard in monoculture plantation and natural forests alike.

Understanding fungi is critical to preserving forests and individual. This is why it’s important that any serious foresters or arborist become students of mycology as well. That’s why I utilize my passion for fungi and trees to take better care of our trees.

06/09/2026

Did you know nitrogen fixing bacteria can be present in the stem and branches of trees and fix over 50% of the nitrogen the tree need? Daizotrophic bacteria can live as endophytes inside the trees above ground tissues and help trees in nutrient poor soils… no root nodules required.

06/07/2026

Nature nerd alert! This is perhaps the most thorough overview bark beetle paper I’ve ever read.

This reveals biochemical actions involved in many stages of bark beetle/tree interactions, as well as including great details on the role of fungi (which play significant roles benefiting the tree and benefiting the bark beetles).

Over a century of research has revealed an amazing complexity of behaviours and physiological adaptations that allow tiny bark beetles to overcome large trees, sometimes resulting in outbreaks that kill millions of trees. Turning a tree into a home ...

06/04/2026

Can you smell this?

It’s Spring and one stand out blossom on trees in my area are the Tanoaks, Notholithocarpus densiflorus. These male catkins extend out with the female flowers at the base of the inflorescence (see the acorns forming).

These flowers are special in that, unlike Oaks, they are fragrant (though definitely not rose scented) and attract insect pollinators. Since these trees prefer shaded mature forest, this can be a vital source of food for pollinators.

Tanoaks are truly ecologically significant species, providing food for pollinators, acorns provide food for many animals and humans, they are a ripe with ectomycorrhizal fungal partners, and their young leaves provide are eaten by deer.

06/03/2026

Mycorrhizal fungi are a meme at this point. They get used to exemplify community partnerships, team work, interpersonal relationships. Who doesn’t want a symbiotic partnership in their lives that helps provide you with adequate nutrients and water, help protect you from pathogens, and you only have to share a 1/4 of your carbon resources with them?

Here is a real life Ectomycorrhizal partnership in action. This Interior Live Oak fine root has become blunted to better host their fungal partner, which covers the root in a mantle of mycelium. Ectomycorrhizal fungi provide a tree with nitrogen, micronutrients, and water in exchange for photosynthates from the tree.

Dr. Ann Pringle has done interesting research in the realm of how Ectomycorrhizal fungi came to be and found genetic evidence they came from wood decay fungi that this niche to be lucrative. I assume the trees appreciated this innovation as well.

Little do people know that how you treat your landscape can affect your soils microbiome and even affect a trees ability to form mycorrhizal relationship. Send me a message if you want to learn more preserving or promoting soil biodiversity to help your trees stay healthy.

06/02/2026

Do you know the #1 thing ignored by arborist?

Roots.

So many times issues with the canopy are observed they are directly linked to root issues, like root pathogens, soil compaction, construction damage, etc.

Using an air spade to remove the soil while leaving roots intact helps tree health professionals inspect the roots and root crown to look for signs of these greater issues. This Interior Live Oaks (Quercus wislizeni) roots looked great. We amended the backfill soil with compost, beneficial microbes including my locally collected ectomycorrhizal fungi, and apply mulch on top.

Thanks to Kyle at Ascendant Tree Care for letting me play with his arborist toys. 🌲

05/26/2026

I love reading the stories trees tell.

This old, though not especially large Quercus kelloggii (California Black Oak) in the Eldorado National Forest has some different things going one that are notable.

1) It has a lightening scar (the gray spiral around the bark) going up the trunk and it shows it wrapped up a now dead and failed stem. What’s unique about this up here in the Sierra Nevada mountains is we rarely see California Black Oaks with lightening scars as they are rarely the tallest tree in the forest. The other tree species in this area were Ponderosa Pine, Jeffery Pine, White Fir and Incense Cedar all have maximum heights well above that while the Black Oak can achieve.
What made the Black Oak stand out? It’s on the edge of a large open slope of granite and shrubs. Trees on the edge of a meadow or lake are more prone to lightening strikes. Also some trees are more prone to lightening strikes than others.

2) You can also see what looks like a white spot at the base of the tree. This is actually old Laetiporus gilbertsonii, Aka Chicken of the Woods. When the fruiting body is old it becomes crumbled and looks like styrofoam. This causes a brown heart rot, which, given the location of the fruiting body, is likely decaying the base and/or roots.

I love when trees like this are located in natural setting like this away from infrastructure because if this tree falls is highly unlikely impact people, so it can be left become an ancient tree in peace.

05/19/2026

I could write a book about what’s wrong here, but let’s talk about PLANT HORMONES today and how hacking your tree changes its hormone balance.

1) Auxin is created almost only in the apical meristem (shoot tips) of branches. It is both key is trees growing taller, branches growing longer, and it promotes root growth. It is also the reason why trees grow towards sunlight. When one side of the tree gets more sun than the other, the more shaded side creates more Auxin. The shaded part grows longer than the side with more sun, causing the tree to bend towards the light.
When you remove almost all shoot tips of a tree like this, Auxin production drastically drops. Since this hormone also helps keeps latent buds on the stem dormant, their dormant days are over. Butchering a tree’s canopy causes drastic shift in plant hormones in the tree.

2) Cytokinins are the second part of this drama unfolding in this picture. Cytokinins are produced by root tips and move up the canopy via the xylem to the canopy where they stimulate latent buds to produce lateral growth. They also stimulate plant cell division and was first discovered in coconut milk. Auxin normally keeps a balance with Cytokinins, but without Auxin present Cytokinins call all the shots and they set all those let buds free to become epicormic sprouts. These are the clusters of leaves you see emerging on the bare branches.

05/09/2026

The one of the highest benchmark of arborist knowledge is the ISA Board Certified Master Arborist Test. There are less than 50 BCMAs in California.