Question
Columned
I have a mature maple tree and this white, hard, polymer type mass is being extruded. Very hard, and inside is long fibers. Doesn't seem to be wetwood or slime flux.
No slime at all to this.
AnswerHi there. Looks like you have a Northern tooth fungus (Climacodon septentrionalis
The northern tooth fungus causes a white, soft, spongy rot of heartwood in maples and other hardwoods. New infections take place through open wounds and frost cracks, and occasionally through dead branch stubs. The incipient stage of the decay causes the heartwood to become white in color, surrounded by a zone of brownish colored wood. In the advanced stage there are characteristic black zone lines running through the white, spongy decay.
The conks are annual and produced in late July or early August. They are generally very large, fleshy, creamy white in color, and consist of a cluster of shelf-like structures placed one above the other. The upper surface is very plain, but slightly scaly in texture. The fruiting body may be as much as 30 cm wide and 75 cm long. During moist periods in the late summer, wind-borne spores are released and spread the disease to additional host trees.
Similar to most stem decays, once the fungus has entered the tree the process cannot be reversed. However, the tree can live for many years with the disease. It is typically slow growing and until it is well-advanced it has little effect on the overall health of the tree. Advanced stages of stem decay often cause severe crown dieback. Severely decayed, trees are prone to wind damage and in heavy windstorms often break off, falling and damaging surrounding healthy trees. Severely decayed trees that annually produce the characteristic large, fleshy, fruiting structures should be removed.
