Landscape trees, valued for their aesthetic nature and their environmental benefits, are becomingly increasingly valuable in urban environments. A single mature tree can add considerable value to ...

When you see mushrooms or other fungi growing out of the trunk of a tree, pay attention. It’s a sign that the wood inside the tree is decaying. “It’s something you want to have a professional look at ...

Sphaerobolus stellatus, or Cannonball fungus, as it lands on nearby plants, could be spread by herbivores grazing and eliminating the spores from their systems.

One of the most basic rules for playing the game "Twenty Questions" is that all of the questions must be definitively answered by either "yes" or "no." The exchange of information allows the players ...

Biomass is a vital source of energy used by people and myriad other organisms. Two decades ago, microbiologist Barry Goodell discovered that some microbes have a special mechanism for the breakdown ...

An international team including Empa researcher Francis Schwarze has sequenced the genome of the common split gill mushroom, Schizophyllum commune, a widely distributed fungus which grows on and ...

Parquet power: fungus-treated wood could soon be used to create energy-generating floors. (Courtesy: Pazzo4562/CC BY-SA 4.0) Infecting wood with wood-decay fungus can boost its piezoelectric output by ...

Decay is a complex process in which organisms use a repertoire of enzymes to slowly exploit and ultimately digest their hosts. Fungi are master decayers of dead plant matter, including wood. So-called ...

A fungus that can break down all the components of plant cell walls is considered a white rot fungus. If it can only break down cellulose and hemicellulose, it's a brown rot fungus. A research team ...

One particularly devastating pathogen, wood-rotting fungi, can compromise the stability of urban trees, resulting in injuries to people and property. Researchers investigated the in vitro development ...