Ostreatus white spongy rot

• French disease name: Carie blanche spongieuse à Pleurotus ostreatus
• Pathogen name: Pleurotus ostreatus (Jacq.:Fr.) P. Kumm.
• Kingdom: Fungi
• Phylum: Basidiomycota
• Class: Agaricomycetes
• Order: Agaricales
• Family: Pleurotaceae
• Partial list of synonyms:
  • Pleurotus limpidus (Fr.) Gill.
  • Pleurotus salignus (Pers.:Fr.) P. Kumm.
  • Pleurotus sapidus Kalchbr.
  • Pleurotus similis Peck

Distribution

• Eastern Canada

Damage, symptoms and biology

The fungus causes decay of the sapwood, affecting mainly the vertical part of the trunk. The damage is not severe and has little or no physiological effect on the trees. The infection is initiated when spores colonize a small wound on the trunk. Once the infection is well established in the outer sapwood, the fruiting body develops and becomes visible. The fruiting body, which bears the spores, is convex-shaped and flattens to a wavy margin; the upper surface is smooth and slightly downy near its attachment to the stem. The colour ranges from yellow-white in young specimens to gray-brown in the oldest ones.

Other information

The oyster mushroom fruiting body is edible and has a mild flavour when harvested young. Be sure to carefully identify mushrooms before eating them.

Canadian Forest Service Publications

Ostreatus white spongy rot

Information on host(s)

Main host(s)

• American beech
• Birch
• Cherries / plums
• Elms
• Hickory
• Juniper
• Maple
• Oaks
• Poplars / aspens / cottonwoods

Photos

Fruiting body

André Carpentier

Fruiting body

Fruiting body

André Carpentier

Fruiting body

André Carpentier