Helvella inflata (Schäeffer)
Rhizina inflata (Schäffer) Quélet
Octospora rhizophora Hedw.
Rhizina inflata var. rhizophora (Hedw.) Massee
Helvella acaulis Pers.
Rhizina laevigata Fr.
Rhizina undulata is a pathogen of Pinus species. Common symptoms associated with R. undulata are wilting and death of young trees, especially after transplanting. Tree mortality may occur within weeks or months. Symptoms of infection in mature trees will include reduced shoot growth, resin production and necrotic needles. The roots become infected and the fungus remains dormant on the roots after the plant has died. After fire events such as slash and burn, when conditions of high humidity are present, fruiting structures will be seen on roots or stumps of burnt trees. These fruiting structures are typically used to confirm the presence of R. undulata.
Fruiting bodies are red to dark brown with a light-yellow margin. They are crust-like and irregularly lobed. Young fruiting bodies appear completely white, the brown initially starts in the middle of the body in older fruiting bodies. The fruiting bodies are resting structures protecting the fungus until the next fire or favourable conditions occur.
Rhizina undulata is a soilborne pathogen that can survive for long periods of time on the roots of Pinus species. The fungus relies on fire to germinate and infects plants through the roots. Fruiting structures can be found during spring or early summer and usually require wet conditions to form.
Management strategies include waiting for the fungus to go dormant before planting, not to slash and burn in a compartment that is known to have the fungus and the use of monitoring plots in sites that are known to have the pathogen.
Fitzpatrick, H. M. (1917). The Development of the Ascocarp of Rhizina undulata Fr. Botanical Gazette, 63(4), 282–296. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2468962
Wingfield, M. and Swart, W. (1994). Integrated management of forest tree diseases in South Africa. Forest Ecology and Management, 65, 11 - 16.
Wingfield, M. J., Slippers, B., Roux. J. & Wingfield, B.D. (2001). Worldwide movement of exotic forest fungi, especially in the tropics and the Southern Hemisphere. BioScience, 51(2), 134 - 140.
