The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

I have inherited a Karo 'hedge' in Piha, West Auckland. It is 3 metres tall, leggy and not really a hedge! 3 have died back and I have found a brown ear-like fungus around the base of the trunk where the bark has fallen away. I have removed the dead trees. If I replant, will this fungus automatically attack and kill the new saplings? Many thanks for any help.

Hi Toby

Do you have images of the fungus? If so could I suggest you send them to Dr Peter Buchanan ([email protected]) and see if he can identify your fungus? Dr Buchanan is the head of the mycology team at Landcare Research Tamaki - if he can't help he should know who can. You see without knowing what the fungus is, one can't really say what will happen if you replant.

It sounds like the fungus you are talking about is a type of wood-ear fungus? If it is this I think something else is killing the trees as wood-ear only feeds on dead wood material, so it has colonised the dead trees post-death, rather than the killing them. But definitely follow the advise in the above post if you want a real species ID and answer.