Honey Fungus

The honey fungus that was slowly killing the old privet hedge in the orchard resulting in it being replaced by Taxus (yew), see blog entry 'Privet Hedge' 14th March 2011, has now appeared at the base of a few of the old fruit trees that were nearest to the hedge. Malus (apple), Pyrus (pear) and Ligustrum (privet) are particularly susceptible to honey fungus which spreads underground, attacking and killing the roots of the plants and then decaying the dead wood. One of the signs of honey fungus to look out for are clumps of honey coloured toadstools that appear on infected stumps in autumn. However, although bad news for the old trees, the squirrels appear to be happy with this new supply of late autumn food.