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Dead tree cause

BeginnerGardener123BeginnerGardener123 Posts: 14
in Problem solving
I have recently moved into a new house and have realised that one of the trees in the corner is  dead, the bark at the bottom of the trunk is peeling away and the whole trunk feels soft when pressed. We will take it down however I was wondering whether there are any precautions I need to take before planting anything else in that corner. Does anyone know what might have killed it? 
P.S. apologies I couldn't figure out how to turn the image the correct way round. The trunk is not very big, about 10 cm in diameter. 

Posts

  • Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,340
    It's not going to be easy to find the cause of death just from a photo of a dead tree.
    Now the tree is dead, fungi have taken hold and are doing their job of breaking down the wood.
    But what caused it to die in the first place is going to be tricky so it's difficult to know what to suggest in term of what you may need to do about the soil.

    Do you know what sort of tree it was?

    Billericay - Essex

    Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
    Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
  • BeginnerGardener123BeginnerGardener123 Posts: 14
    I think might be a rowan based on the bark and shape, but as we moved in to the house in winter I never saw it in leaf. Having done a bit of research myself also this morning I am now really worried that this may be honey fungus; although the photos on the RHS website look somewhat different. There is a gorgeous mature apple tree only 3 or 4 metres away from the dead one and also another small apple, a large cherry and another rowan further away so I'm worried that some of them may be affected based on what I have read online (not sure if the doom and gloom articles can be fully trusted though!?). 
  • Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,340
    I wish I were able to offer something other than - I don't know, but I don't....

    There are vast numbers of fungi around and people often assume honey fungus, as I've done myself on occasion, when it eventually turns out that it isn't.
    I can only keep my fingers crossed for you and hope that another forum member will be able to offer some insight

    Billericay - Essex

    Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
    Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
  • BeginnerGardener123BeginnerGardener123 Posts: 14
    Hello, just wondering if anyone else has any thoughts on this? 
  • steephillsteephill Posts: 2,841
    Useful ID info on honey fungus here - https://www.wildfooduk.com/mushroom-guide/honey-fungus/ Peel back some of the bark and look for stuff which looks like black bootlaces.

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    edited April 2021
    Trees die for all sorts of reasons. When they’re dead, fungi colonise the wood and break it down so that it rots and becomes part of the soil. The majority of the fungi that do that are harmless to living plants, so unless you find the black bootlaces I wouldn’t worry. 

    By the way, rotting trees are a wonderful resource for many of the small invertebrates that are so important in nature, and are struggling to survive in our neat and tidy gardens. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





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