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+--- Thread: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? (/showthread.php?tid=12550)
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Punatic007 - 03-09-2015
quote:
Originally posted by gypsy69
Sweet potato yams are the culprit of the fungus, why did it mutate to kill the ohia, maybe the kava also? Maybe I am wrong but its the best we have so far.
P.S. trying to not blame geothermal for you trolls, probably a combination of factors to make the ohia's fall victim to this fungus.
Yes gypsy, one always needs to look at the whole picture. For a fungus to take over and kill a tree, it most likely has been weakened by environmental stressors, any good gardener knows this. Same as a human eating a lousy diet, eventually the imbalances in the body become weaknesses for disease to set in. Pretty simple stuff.
The virus or whatever it was that killed so many coconut trees only got my weaker ones.
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Rene Siracusa - 03-09-2015
JB Friday will give a talk to the American Rhododendron Society Hawaii Chapter on Rapid Ohia Death this Sunday, the Ides of March at the Kea'au Community center. There will be a potluck at noon followed by the presentation at 1. You will have an opportunity to ask questions and get them answered. You may just attend the presentation or attend the entire potluck and meeting, which lasts till about 3 pm - your choice.
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Guest - 03-10-2015
P. Maise, strange purple mushrooms. These purple sometimes pink mushrooms are popping up by the hundreds if not thousands. You know that large ring or circle of dead grass I mentioned previously, well now its a living ring of purple mushrooms. No where else in the yard do we see these, we have never seen a mushroom that looks like these. The bright colors makes us feel as though they may be very poisonous. 60 yard long circle or ring of purple mushrooms, my younger boys beat down with their super hero swords, funny stuff.
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Carey - 03-10-2015
Gypsy, the ring is a "fairy ring" (not kidding) that is formed by the mushrooms... they start off with just one - a few heads, usually around something dead, and after many mushroom generations they form larger & larger rings....most likely they were there, just not noticed until now...
Luckily, Hilo has a great mycology resource in Dr. Don Hemmes... & he co-authored a wonderful book:
"Mushrooms of Hawai'i: An Identification Guide" by Dennis E. Desjardin, Don E. Hemmes (ISBN13: 9781580083393)
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Guest - 03-10-2015
Thank you Carey, great info. We did notice the grass dying back for some time now(6mths or more) this past rain tuned death into life. The purple and pink shrooms give off a certain fairy tale vibe. This ring is probably over 150 feet around, 6 inches wide, covered in mushrooms now. Still haven't heard if they are poisonous?
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - ElysianWort - 03-10-2015
I second that Carey. Dr Hemmes is a colorful and brilliant individual as well as a mycology expert. His courses of biochemistry and botany were some of my most memorable. I'm guessing he still works at the university here and if so, he would probably be delighted to talk shrooms with anyone.
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - rainyjim - 03-10-2015
Last I knew he was still a professor emeritus and taught a lab course.
He is indeed as Carey mentioned the resident expert in mycology.
A great teacher of biology who the university will sorely miss when he chooses to retire...'they don't make them like they used to'.
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Justin - 03-19-2015
I attended a presentation by JB Friday in Leilani tonight, and it was very informative, but also showed that everyone involved is just at the tip of the iceberg. The folks involved now believe that what is causing the wilt is a fungus, Ceratocystis. It is unclear what specific species of Ceratocystis it is, or if it is a new species. In the last year people have done a substantial amount of research and testing in order to determine the cause of the problem we are all experiencing - that is the good news.
The bad news is that this meeting reminded me of scenes from "And The Band Played On" (about the outbreak of AIDS in the early 1980s in San Francisco) and "Contagion" (about a fictitious disease spreading around the globe). There is no rhyme or reason - at least none discerned as of yet - as to which trees get infected. Old and young are both affected. Healthy and distressed are both affected. While many of the most impacted areas are along the East Rift Zone, the range of infected areas has expanded almost geometrically over the past 2 years. It is unclear what passes on the fungus - insects, soil, humans (via cutting tools or bulldozers). It is unclear why some trees in a stand survive while others do not.
My two cents - and it is only my two cents - is that by the time all of the potential causes, effects, and transmission details are figured out, a vast array of our forests will be decimated. Frankly, given how rapid the fungus kills off the trees, and how long it will take to figure out the problem and solution (assuming there even is a solution), my personal take is that we'd be better off spending our time and resources on developing new plant strains and alternatives to Ohia. According to JB, as of yet the fungus has not been found in ANY Metrosideros species besides polymorpha (which is the Ohia). So my take - and it's only mine - is that we could greatly benefit from research and development on hybrids between polymorpha and other Ohia species, much like farmers have been doing for years with citrus plants and ornamental plants.
I hate to be so negative, but I didn't glean many positives from the meeting tonight, informative and well-intentioned as it was.
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Obie - 03-19-2015
GMO Ohias would be the quickest way !
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - kalakoa - 03-19-2015
by the time all of the potential causes, effects, and transmission details are figured out
Especially at the usual rate of such efforts. Fire ants, etc.